Trust Director Professor Brian Brivati delivers lectures in Moscow and St. Petersburg

Moscow State Institute of International Relations

Trust Director Brian Brivati delivered a lecture on February 17 2009 at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University). The session was chaired by Professor Oleg Barabanov, Head of the Department of EU Politics and Policies. The students at the lecture were doing a special programme in the politics of the European Union. The course is for professionals working in Russian government departments. Brian’s lecture focussed on the historical evolution of the relationship between Britain and the European Union and the dynamic relationship between the UK and the EU. His text is summarised below. The questions were lively and challenging – ranging from Russian ownership of British football clubs to the justification for the NATO operation in Kosovo. After the lecture, Brian spoke about the John Smith Fellowship and Lilia Vlasova, John Smith Fellow in 2006 and a student on the course, described her experiences in the UK.

Download PDF - Summary of Lecture

The views expressed in this lecture were those of Professor Brivati, not the John Smith Memorial Trust.


St. Petersburg Institute of Law

Whilst in Russia Brian also gave a lecture, titled 'Genocide and New Sovereignty' at the St. Petersburg Institute of Law, delivered to law students, practitioners and scholars. 

Download PDF - Summary of Lecture

The meeting and discussion which followed were organised by the Law and Society Project run by Arkady Gutnikov, a Director of Clinical Legal Education Center of the Institute of Law, and Maxim Timofeev, a Russian 2008 John Smith Fellow and project manager. The Law & Society Project is aimed at the promotion of interdisciplinary discussions about the role of law and legal profession in contemporary societies. The continuous seminar «Law & Society» includes meetings (informal discussions, round tables etc.) with the participation of specially invited gests and experts.


Maxim Timofeev (left), Brian Brivati (second left), and students at the Institute of Law in St. Petersburg
Photo Courtesy Tatiana Solomakhina


Brian at his St.Petersburg lecture
Photo Courtesy Tatiana Solomakhina

February 2009

More Information

Related Links

Law & Society Project, St. Petersburg (website in Russian)

MGIMO University (website in Russian)

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