In the footsteps of empires: a congress The ICS analyzes the keys to our time in light of the imperial past of the East and West

How does the bequest of empires survive today? Can an empire re-emerge? How does the West deal with its colonial past? These are some of the questions that were explored at the Internationalcongress 'Empires: Experience, Memory and Idea', organized by the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) of the University of Navarra, with the partnership the project 'Crossed Gazes between the Iranian and Hispanic worlds'. From October 1-3, it brought together experts from countries such as the United States, Turkey, Sweden, Iran and the United Kingdom, as well as Spain, who debated on the traces of the imperial past, the policies surrounding the report and the new colonialisms, among other issues. The congress was the culmination of the ICS 2024-2025 challenge "Orientalism and Occidentalism: crossed views".

The researcher Javier Gil Guerrero, director of the ICSchallenge , explains that, currently, "there is a discussion on how to deal with the question of the imperial and colonial past of the West, a topic that has moved from the educational, literary and scientific world to politics and society". In this sense, revisiting this past affects areas such as schools, universities, museums and public squares. "There is a process of reimperialization of former empires that are trying to recreate their imperial sphere, as is the case of Russia or China, and all the conflicts derived from these other powers that seek to restore and rescue their imperial past," he stresses.

In the light of this analysis, the congress allowed for further deepening in areas that have already been studied throughout the course on the relationship between the East and the West. It also offered some of the keys to better understand our times and address challenges related to identity, report and geopolitical, social and cultural relations. Historian Peter Heather, professor at King's College London, gave a lecture in which he analyzed the parallels and differences between the fall of the Roman Empire and the current crisis in the West.

In the expert's opinion, the study of the fall of the Roman Empire is a good mirror to rethink our time: "financial aid a lot because it is a huge historical phenomenon and we see the whole story. It is the largest state that has ever existed in western Eurasia and, moreover, it lasted an extraordinary amount of time: half a millennium. That's the difference between now and 1525, with Henry VIII on the throne".

Despite the differences, Heather notes parallels between the fall of the Roman Empire and today's status : "The Roman Empire generates its own problems over time by creating alternative centers of economic, demographic and therefore political power. Some were openly hostile, others were not, but that changes the strategic context in which the empire exists and makes its continuity more difficult. Therein lies the parallel with the modern West.

In this sense, he explains that " globalization, by shifting industrial production to places like China, India, parts of South America and, increasingly, Africa, is changing where wealth is generated on the planet. And political and military power are very closely linked to economic power. If you change the patron saint of economic power, you will also change the distribution of political and military power in the medium term."

Shared values

For his part, historian Jonathan Israel of Princeton University, an expert on the Enlightenment, considers it "very difficult, though not impossible" to build a democracy based on Enlightenment principles and points out that the core topic lies in Education. He gives as an example the division he sees in the United States: "The gap between a great mass of people without university Education and the elites who do have it must be reduced, and it can be done by offering a better primary and secondary Education , with much more politics and discussion".

Israel, author of a monumental biography of Spinoza, argues that "the only way to build a system of values that everyone can share is through a Philosophy" built "on the basis of equality, freedom and the right of all to happiness, a system of values that sets people free and involves them in the common good".

Like shared values, collectivereport is also essential for creating identity in societies. Karl Gustafsson, professor at Stockholm University, is an expert on the role of collective report in international relations: "The stories we tell about ourselves can influence the relationship between states because, if I tell that I was a victim of another nation, disputes between countries can spill over into the present and affect foreign and security policy. For example, the view of Japan as an oppressive country after the war against China and World War II led Japan to limit its weapons capabilities and security policies in its constitution. The expert points out that, in order not to forget history, collective report can be treated as a security issue. "Not only military issues can be treated as a security issue, this logic can be applied to any issue for which extraordinary measures - not only political ones - need to be taken to manage it, such as climate change," he says. Education, museums, monuments... these are some of the measures that governments can take.

Empires at war

Another reminiscence of empires today is the case of Russia. "Russia is still an imperialist power, the feeling of grandeur has always been felt in its identity," says Maria Mälksoo, professor of political science at the University of Copenhagen. For the expert, Russia is not satisfied with its current role in global politics and wants to regain its status, however "it intends to do so with 19th century tools, which gives a feeling of being disconnected from the way the rest of the world acts," she regrets.

In this way, Mälksoo is concerned with the identity dynamics that the country has taken on and its apparent need to add pieces of its former territory in Eastern Europe, despite its enormous size and apparent inability to manage the country. Thus, the war with Ukraine drags on for more than three and a half years without reaching an agreement that, according to the professor, cannot be forced. She regrets that the U.S. Administration is opting for the Russian side and the European Union is focusing on treaties to maintain peace once a conflict whose end is not in sight is over. The expert points out that we can learn lessons from the end of the Cold War. "We must get rid of epistemic habits about how the interests of the big players have been prioritized, if you have something to defend, be prepared for it," she concludes.