Normalize and rationalize: Intellectuals of statecraft and Russia’s war in Ukraine

This contribution to the Forum seeks to discuss the epistemic and genealogical conditions that frame the unfolding of a set of academic discourses aimed at - more implicitly rather than explicitly - normalize and rationalize Russia's military intervention in Ukraine. First, we identify the process of understanding the Russian invasion on the example of dominant discourses. Second, we outline social conditions and drivers that facilitate their reproduction and acceptance rooting their genesis and persistence in the existing limitations on knowledge production. Finally, we briefly discuss the possible ways of moving forward.