Yuval Noah Harari argues that what’s at stake in Ukraine is the direction of human history

At the heart of the Ukraine crisis lies a fundamental question about the nature of history and the nature of humanity: is change possible? Can humans change the way they behave, or does history repeat itself endlessly, with humans forever condemned to re-enact past tragedies without changing anything except the décor? A return to the jungle would also undermine global co-operation on problems such as preventing catastrophic climate change or regulating disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and genetic engineering. History’s direction If you believe that historic change is impossible, and that humanity never left the jungle and never will, the only choice left is whether to play the part of predator or prey. Yuval Noah Harari is a historian, philosopher and author of “Sapiens”, “Homo Deus” and the series “Sapiens: A Graphic History”.