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Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer will talk about Russia’s current war in that country at 11 a.m. Thursday, March 9, at Â鶹´å’s World Theater. The event is part of the 2023 Festival of Languages, Cultures hosted by Â鶹´å's School of World Languages and Cultures.

Pifer is the keynote speaker for the fifth annual festival, a two-day event features a Cuban music group, local authors, T-shirt screen printing, taiko drummers, a Japanese tea ceremony, panel discussions and more.

Pifer served as Ukrainian ambassador from 1998 to 2000. He is a nonresident senior fellow in the Arms Control and Non-Proliferation Initiative, and the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution. According to the , he spent his 25 years with the State Department focused on U.S. relations with the former Soviet Union and Europe, and on arms control and security.

Below is a schedule of festival events:

Thursday

• Fábrika T-shirt Screen Printing Workshop (VPA, Bldg. 70) - 9:00 am-11:00 am
• Keynote: Steven Pifer, Russia's War on Ukraine (World Theater) - 11:00 am-12:00 pm
• Cultural Tabling & Performances (Main Quad) - 12:00 pm-2:00 pm
• Ana Luengo, The Spanish Civil War (World Theater) - 3:00 pm-4:00 pm
• Literary Readings with Local Authors (World Theater) - 4:00 pm-5:00 pm
• Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Panel Discussion (World Theater) - 5:30 pm-6:30 pm

Friday

• Japanese Tea Ceremony (Student Center B12, West Lounge) - 1:30 pm-3:30 pm
• Reception (World Theater) - 4:00 pm-4:30 pm
• Shorinryu Karate Kata with Daniela Setka (World Theater) - 4:30 pm-4:45 pm
• MPA and WLC Music Sessions (World Theater) - 5:00 pm-6:00 pm
• Cuarteto León (Cuban Music Group) (World Theater) - 6:00 pm-7:00 pm
• Watsonville Taiko & Shinsho-Mugen Daiko (World Theater) - 7:00 pm-8:00 pm