Ukraine war and post-pandemic woes signal 'new world reality', Abu Dhabi summit hears

Political instability, populism and rampant inflation likely to last for years

Huma Abedin, formerly Hillary Clinton’s chief of staff and author of ‘Both/And: A Life in Many Worlds’, speaking at the Forbes 30/50 Summit at the Louvre, Abu Dhabi. All photos: Ruel Pableo for The National

Attendees listening to the speakers at the Forbes 30/50 Summit at the Louvre, Abu Dhabi.

Cathie Wood, the founder, chief executive and chief investment officer of ARK Investment Management addresses the Forbes 30/50 Summit.

The Forbes 30/50 Summit is taking place March 6 to March 9, taking in International Women’s Day on March 8.

Naheed Farid, former member of the Afghanistan Parliament.

This year's event draws from the under 30 and over 50 age groups.

Pamela Winn, Founder and President, RestoreHER speaking at the Forbes 30/50 Summit at the Louvre, Abu Dhabi.

The Forbes 30/50 Summit aims to showcase the experience, wisdom and leadership skills of women around the world.

Randall Lane, chief content officer of Forbes, moderating at the summit.

(L-R) Diane Brady, assistant managing editor at Forbes with Jenny Johnson, president and chief executive of Franklin Templeton.

Maggie McGrath, editor of Forbes Women.

Forbes said it wants to create 'the greatest global event for women in history'.

Hanan Sayed Worrel, author of 'Table Tales, The Global Nomad Cuisine of Abu Dhabi' showing her book at the Forbes 30/50 Summit.

The audience listens to the speakers at the summit.

HH AlSayyida Basma Al Said, talks about mindfulness.

Forbes says it wants to 'use this event as a catalyst for change'.

Mentoring is one of this year's important themes.

Fatima Bin Safwan, singer and songwriter, performs at the Forbes 30/50 Summit in Abu Dhabi.

Speakers this year will include Jenny Just, Loren Gray and Lexi Underwood.

Yuliya Tychkivska, executive director of the Aspen Institute of Kyiv, addresses the audience.

Tina Fordham, geopolitical strategist and adviser.

Solamia Boretska, chief executive and cofounder of LendoBox.

Tyra Banks, entrepreneur, supermodel and Emmy Award-winning television producer.

Noura Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth.

Loren Gray, singer, model and online content creator.

Princess Lamia bint Majed Saud, secretary general and member of the board of trustees at Alwaleed Philanthrophies.

Live updates: follow the latest news on Russia-Ukraine

As Ukraine crisis pushes Europe further into its worst conflict since the Second World War, the sanctions imposed on Russia by countries around the world mark an epochal change in the geopolitical scene.

The continuing conflict coupled with fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic will have far-reaching consequences for politics and the global economy, leading political advisers said in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

Speaking at the Forbes 30/50 Summit, Huma Abedin, chief of staff to former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Tina Fordham, geopolitical strategist and adviser, gave a warning that the short-term impact of the Russian incursion in Ukraine would likely be rising prices and intensified deglobalisation.

I think that the period of time where people from rich, industrialised countries don't have to pay attention to politics is probably over

Tina Fordham,
geopolitical strategist and advisor

“I think that the period of time where people from rich, industrialised countries don't have to pay attention to politics is probably over,” said Ms Fordham.

“Now, we're in an inflationary environment. We're in a tightening environment, where commodities, prices and supply chain risks are coming out of the pandemic.

“So if we take the combination of factors here, we have both the pandemic, which was a massive deglobalising event and now this conflict.

“I think it's the beginning of a new geopolitical epoch because the other conflicts that have taken place in our personal and professional lifetimes haven't been systemic.”

As the world transitions into a post Covid-19 era, Ms Fordham said it will face periodic disruptions for some time.

Cars are left abandoned on a road as residents flee the town of Irpin, Ukraine after days of heavy shelling. Reuters

A Ukrainian soldier helps a family fleeing from Irpin. Reuters

A bus passes the Duke of Wellington statue, which has a traffic cone in the colours of the flag of Ukraine placed on top of it, in Glasgow, Scotland. AP

Ukrainian children sleep at the reception point at the train station in Przemysl, Poland. Reuters

Smoke rises as a Ukrainian soldier stands by the only escape route used by locals to flee from the town of Irpin. Reuters

A man flees from Irpin. Reuters

A screengrab from footage released by the Russian Defence Ministry shows a purported Russian tank unit advancement in the Kyiv region. AFP

People walk on debris of residential buildings damaged by shelling in the Zhytomyr region. Reuters

A damaged residential building after Russian multiple rocket launchers shelled the area in the southern city of Mykolaiv. AFP

Ukrainian soldiers sit in their armoured vehicle after fighting against Russian troops and Russia-backed separatists near Zolote village, Luhansk region. AFP

A woman offers accommodation for people fleeing Ukraine at the main railway station in Berlin, Germany. Getty Images

A soldier holds a helmet as a wedding crown during the ceremony for members of the Ukrainian Territorial Defence Forces Lesia Ivashchenko and Valerii Fylymonov, at a checkpoint in Kyiv. AP

Ukrainian soldiers carry a woman fleeing the town of Irpin. AP

A factory and warehouse burn after being bombarded in Irpin. AP

Ukrainian soldiers near Zolote. AFP

A Ukrainian refugee boy, wearing a blanket on his shoulders, warms his hands with a gas heater shortly after crossing the Siret border into northern Romania. EPA

People demonstrate against the Russian military operation in Ukraine in Buenos Aires, Argentina. EPA

First responders work at the scene after a missile hit a building at Havryshivka Vinnytsia International Airport in Vinnytsia, Ukraine. Reuters

A woman at a checkpoint on the road to Kyiv after her evacuation from a nearby town. AFP

A placard in the Ukrainian colours is held up at an anti-war demonstration the Bebelplatz square in Berlin, Germany. Reuters

A Ukrainian serviceman helps an elderly woman in Irpin, 20 kilometres north-west of the capital Kyiv. AP Photo

Protesters cry during a demonstration in support of Ukraine at the Plaza Catalunya square in Barcelona. AFP

A man walks past a machine gun at a checkpoint next to the last bridge on the road that connects the town of Stoyanka to the outskirts of Ukraine's capital Kyiv. AFP

Ukrainian servicemen put a wounded man on a stretcher in Irpin. AP Photo

People board a train to return to Ukraine after getting supplies in Zahony, Hungary. AP Photo

Balloons in the colors of Ukraine during a demonstration against the Russian attack on Ukraine, in Mainz, Germany. AP

A Ukrainian girl helps to weave a camouflage net for the Ukrainian army, in Odesa. EPA

Molotov cocktails prepared by a group of volunteers in Odesa. Hundreds are made every day. EPA

Ukrainian servicemen assist people fleeing the town of Irpin after crossing the Irpin River on an improvised path under a bridge that was destroyed by a Russian air strike. AP Photo

A woman holds a dog while crossing the Irpin River on an improvised path under a bridge that was destroyed by a Russian airstrike, while assisting people fleeing the town of Irpin, Ukraine. AP Photo

Marina Yatsko and her boyfriend Fedor comfort each other at a hospital in Mariupol after her 18-month-old son Kirill was killed by shelling. AP Photo

Ukrainian civilians receive weapons training in a cinema in Lviv, western Ukraine. AP Photo

Residents flee the town of Irpin, near Kyiv, Ukraine. AP Photo

Ukrainian soldiers carry a sick woman as civilians flee Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, after Russian attacks. AP Photo

Captured Russian soldiers at a press conference in the Interfax news agency in Kyiv, Ukraine. AP Photo

Ukrainians beneath a destroyed bridge in Irpin. AP Photo

A woman fleeing Ukraine on a bus near the border crossing in Korczowa, Poland. AP Photo

A Ukrainian soldier and a militia man help a fleeing family on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 5, 2022. AP Photo

Smoke rises after shelling by Russian forces in Mariupol. AP Photo

People at a hospital during shelling by Russian forces in Mariupol. AP Photo

Displaced Ukrainians at the Resurrection New Athos Monastery in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv. AFP

“We're not necessarily going to have central banks able to suppress volatility, which has allowed us all to not have to pay attention to politics or price rises or other things,” she said.

“It's going to be difficult for leaders, and I think that there will be repercussions and consequences across sectors and geographies.”

Ms Abedin, who has worked alongside Ms Clinton for more than two decades, said the Russian attacks in Ukraine have highlighted the brunt that women and children face in the midst of war.

“[On the news] I watched a family killed on a bridge [in Ukraine] yesterday. A mother and her two children,” she said.

“Our hearts and minds are very much on what's happening in the world right now, but simultaneously seeing the defiance and the strength of the Ukrainian people has been just extraordinary.

“I think we're learning from Ukraine, both the leadership and also the citizens, of what it is to fight, to be a patriot, to fight for your country, to fight for what you believe in, to fight for your truth.”

Calling the crisis “the world’s new reality”, Ms Fordham and Ms Abedin said this was a war of information and misinformation.

They said the widespread protests across Russia are especially notable, considering that you can be imprisoned for 15 years for protesting, while at the same time there is a fair amount of public support for this conflict by Russians.

“I think that leads to another point, this isn't just a kinetic conflict, it's an information war,” said Ms Fordham.

“And that's another weapon that we saw to a very detrimental effect during the pandemic, that information can be used and people can be mobilised around, to the extent to which we can have a significant proportion of a population living literally in a parallel universe.

“Family members living in Ukraine and Russia are having entirely different conversations. I mean, Russians are not hearing the truth.”

On Monday, as Ukraine accused Moscow of intensifying shelling in the country, the Russian Defence Ministry said humanitarian corridors will be opened in the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv, Mariupol, Kharkiv and Sumy.

The ceasefire — at 10am Moscow time (11am UAE time) — came at the request of French President Emmanuel Macron, who spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Interfax reported.