Dear members of the HIPSIR family, Faculty, Support Staff, Collaborators in the different departments, Students, and Alumni, allow me to begin my address by extending to each one of you a very warm welcome and convey my best wishes for a productive and successful new academic year 2022-2023.

We resume classes for this academic year at a crucial moment. While we can rejoice that the Covid pandemic is progressively fading away, peace and cohesive international relations have never been as much challenged as they are today. In addition to the mushrooming conflicts and the trumpets of war sounding across the globe, the war in Ukraine is not only raising concerns about global economic and financial systems, but it also defies the current international order that has been with us since the second World War