Dr Mykola Nazarov

DSc, Political Science · Researcher & policy expert

Tallinn, Estonia / Sumy, Ukraine
politics.sumdu@gmail.com
Sahaidachnyi Security Center · ICDS profile · LinkedIn

Profile

Doctor of Political Sciences (DSc), Senior Analyst at the Sahaidachnyi Security Center, and a non-resident Research Fellow at the International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS). I am also an Assistant Professor at Sumy State University and serve as Director of the Research Centre for Regional Security.

At the Sahaidachnyi Security Center, I lead research on security cooperation between Ukraine and the Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8). My work also focuses on building a practical platform for Ukrainian–Nordic technology projects to strengthen joint security capabilities. My research and professional interests include national resilience, civil-military cooperation, Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction, European and Euro-Atlantic integration, Ukraine–EU and Ukraine–NATO relations, Ukrainian refugees displaced by the war, and political and social transformations in Ukraine.

I joined ICDS as a non-resident Research Fellow in January 2025. Previously I worked as Lead Expert on National Resilience within the Homeland Security Division of the GLOBSEC Kyiv Office. From 2021 to 2023, I contributed as an expert to the Resilient Ukraine programme, led by ICDS and supported by Estonian Development Cooperation.

My academic work has been published in journals including the Journal of Community Psychology, Stress and Health, Foresight, Demokratizatsiya, The Journal of Slavic Military Studies, and Problems and Perspectives in Management. I am the author of National Resilience and Post-War Reconstruction of Ukraine, published by Springer in 2025, and a co-author of Mapping the Peacetime Reconstruction Needs of Ukraine, prepared for the European Parliament in 2026. I have also authored and co-authored numerous peer-reviewed articles on resilience, security, civil-military relations, and Ukraine’s political and social development.

Professional experience

Education & professional development

• Doctor of Science (DSc), Political Science. Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University. Postdoctoral studies, 2023–2025.
• PhD, Political Science. V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, awarded 2017; doctoral programme, 2012–2015.
• Master of Engineering Mechanics. Sumy State University, 2011–2012.
• Bachelor of Engineering Mechanics. Sumy State University, 2007–2011.
• Practical Business Diplomacy. Certified course, Kyiv School of Public Administration, 2024.

Research projects & contributions

Scientific supervision of international projects

• Repatriation of Ukrainian war refugees. Scientific supervisor of the research project at the International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS), Estonia.
• East European perspective of security at the local level. International seminar under the NATO Science for Peace and Security programme, Kraków, Poland, 2023.
• Assessment of security challenges and the level of NATO support in the Sumy region. International research project supported by NATO’s Public Diplomacy Division, 2023–2024.
• Research of priority security threats in South-Eastern Ukraine. International research project supported by NATO’s Public Diplomacy Division, 2022.
• International scientific workshop on resilience. Held under the NATO Science for Peace and Security programme at Sumy State University, 19–21 May 2021; funded by NATO.

Research and expert contributions

• Building resilience in conflict through dialogue. Research commissioned by the Ukrainian Independent Center for Political Studies (UNCPD).
• Strengthening the resilience of Ukraine through the development of regional security experience. Project expert; ICDS and the US Embassy in Ukraine.
• War of narratives: the image of Ukraine in Western, Russian and Ukrainian mass media (1991–2022). Co-author of the analytical paper.
• National Resilience and Post-war Reconstruction of Ukraine. Lead investigator and author of the chapter, Springer, 2025.

Selected academic publications

• Resilience and Adaptation Among Ukrainians Across Two Cross‐Sectional Measurements Amid Prolonged Conflict. Journal of Community Psychology · 54(5), e70122 (2026).
• Exploring Interdependencies Between Identity and Resilience: Lessons from the War in Ukraine for the Baltic States. Democratic Resilience in the Baltics, Vol. 2 · Springer · pp. 181–207 (2026).
• The Role of Civilian-Military Cooperation in the Ukrainian Asymmetric War Strategy. The Journal of Slavic Military Studies · 38(2), 157–178 (2025).
• National Resilience and Post-war Reconstruction of Ukraine. Ukraine’s Journey to Recovery, Reform and Post-War Reconstruction · Springer · pp. 63–73 (2025).
• Mechanisms for ensuring national stability under modern challenges: organizational, information technology and socioeconomic dimensions. foresight · 27(6), 1179–1192 (2025).
• Hope and Distress: A Cross‐Country Study Amid the Russian‐Ukrainian War. Stress and Health · 41(2), e70033 (2025).

Academic publication list · Scopus author profile

Selected policy analysis & reports

• Mapping the Peacetime Reconstruction Needs of Ukraine. With Dmitri Teperik. European Parliament, 2026.
• Ukrainian War Refugees in Estonia: Sociodemographic Portrait and Support Policies. ICDS, 2025.
• Returning Ukrainians Home: Mission Possible? ICDS, 2025.
• Russia’s War in Ukraine: War and Society. ICDS, 2024.
• How Russia Went to War: The Kremlin’s Preparations for Its Aggression Against Ukraine. With Kalev Stoicescu, Keir Giles and Matthew D. Johnson. ICDS, 2023.

Selected conference papers & abstracts

• The Repatriation of Ukrainian War Refugees as a Factor of European Security. Conference on Russia Papers · 6(1), 56–66 · 28 May 2026 (2026).
• Resilience and Adaptation in Prolonged Conflict: A Longitudinal Analysis of Ukrainian Responses During the War with Russia. Prehospital and Disaster Medicine · 41(S1), s199–s199 (2026).

Conferences, seminars & professional meetings

2026

• Defending Baltics 2026, Vilnius, Lithuania. Speaker in the panel “Total Defence Under Fire – What Must Be Ready Before the First Strike?” Watch the panel discussion.
• European Parliament · Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET), Brussels, Belgium. Presentation of the study Mapping the Peacetime Reconstruction Needs of Ukraine. Watch the committee meeting.
• ASN World Convention, New York, United States. Speaker at the Association for the Study of Nationalities convention.

2025

• Meetings with US congressional and religious representatives, Washington, DC, United States. Discussions on the situation in Ukraine and prospects for a peace agreement with Russia, at the invitation of the International Republican Institute.
• Lennart Meri Conference, Tallinn, Estonia. Conference participant.

2024

• Riga Conference, Riga, Latvia. Participant in the roundtable “National Identity and Societal Resilience: Lessons from the War in Ukraine for the Baltic States”.
• NATO Public Forum, Washington, DC, United States. Forum participant.

2023

• DCAF expert seminar, Geneva, Switzerland. Presentation at the seminar “Establishing a balance between efficiency and democratic civilian control in the defence sector: lessons for Ukraine from Finland, South Korea and Taiwan”, at the invitation of DCAF.
• NATO Public Forum, Vilnius, Lithuania. Participant in the forum held during the NATO Summit in Vilnius.
• Lennart Meri Conference, Tallinn, Estonia. Presentation of the findings of How Russia Went to War: The Kremlin’s Preparations for Its Aggression Against Ukraine.

2022

• The New Era of Insecurity, University of Helsinki, Finland. Presentation of research findings at the international conference.

2021

• History of Tomorrow – the Unpredictable Outlook, Tallinn, Estonia. Participant in the international school at the invitation of the International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS).

Languages

English, Ukrainian, Russian.