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As the world watches the Russian invasion of Ukraine unfold, UkraineAlert delivers the best Atlantic Council expert insight and analysis on Ukraine twice a week directly to your inbox.

editor’s picks

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Aug 5, 2025

Digital democracy is the key to staging wartime elections in Ukraine

By Brian Mefford

With no end in sight to Russia's invasion, Ukraine cannot afford to postpone all elections indefinitely. With this in mind, it is time to start the process of digitalizing Ukraine’s democracy, writes Brian Mefford.

Civil Society Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Aug 5, 2025

Ukraine’s anti-corruption reforms are more vital than ever during wartime

By Olena Halushka

The recent wave of nationwide protests in defense of the country’s anti-corruption reforms served as a timely reminder that Ukraine’s democratic instincts remain strong, even amid the horrors of Russia’s invasion and the escalating bombardment of Ukrainian cities, writes Olena Halushka.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2025

A Ukraine without Ukrainians: Putin is erasing Europe’s largest nation

By Peter Dickinson

Russia is systematically erasing all traces of Ukrainian national identity throughout occupied Ukraine as Vladimir Putin pursues an extreme form of eliminationist imperialism in the heart of twenty-first century Europe, writes Peter Dickinson.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2025

Ukraine’s democracy is the key to the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration

By Alyona Getmanchuk

While Ukraine currently faces a range of unique challenges, this cannot justify neglecting democratic principles. On the contrary, defending the democratic gains of recent decades is vital if further progress toward Euro-Atlantic integration is to be achieved, writes Alyona Getmanchuk.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 29, 2025

Trump offered Putin victory in Ukraine. Why did Putin refuse?

By Peter Dickinson

Trump thought he could get a peace deal in Ukraine by offering Putin generous terms that amounted to a Russian victory. But Putin rejected Trump's offer because he cannot accept anything less that Ukraine's complete capitulation, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jul 29, 2025

US ambassador: China believes it is waging a proxy war through Russia

By Mykola Bielieskov

US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker has attacked China for supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and accused Beijing of waging a “proxy war” to distract the West, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

China Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 25, 2025

Ukraine’s supporters should prioritize unity and focus on defeating Russia

By Pavlo Grod

Wartime Ukraine needs unity. Even when the country’s supporters bitterly disagree, it is important to remember exactly what is at stake, writes Pavlo Grod.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 24, 2025

Wartime protests prove Ukraine’s democratic instincts are still strong

By Peter Dickinson

This week’s nationwide protests are a reminder that Ukraine’s grassroots democratic instincts remain exceptionally strong despite the current wartime conditions in the country, writes Peter Dickinson.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 24, 2025

Ukraine is now an indispensable security partner for the US and Europe

By Oleksiy Goncharenko

Ukraine's million-strong army and unique experience of the twenty-first-century battlefield makes it an indispensable security partner for the United States and Europe, writes Oleksiy Goncharenko.

Conflict Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

Jul 22, 2025

Ukraine rocked by first wartime protests amid attacks on anti-corruption agencies

By Andrew D’Anieri

For more than a decade, Ukrainians have been fighting a two-front war: against Russian aggression and against high-level political corruption. So it's puzzling to see Kyiv move to gut independent anti-corruption agencies, writes Andrew D'Anieri.

Civil Society Corruption

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The views expressed in UkraineAlert are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values, and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia, and Central Asia in the East.

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UkraineAlert

Jun 30, 2026

Ukraine’s blockade of Crimea puts Putin’s greatest victory under threat

By Peter Dickinson

Crimea has long been seen as Vladimir Putin’s greatest victory, but Ukraine's drone blockade is now turning the Russian-occupied peninsula into an embarrassing symbol of imperial overreach, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Technologies

UkraineAlert

Jun 30, 2026

Banning Russian soldiers from the EU is a common sense security measure

By Elena Davlikanova, Tatiana Vorozhko

Supporters of the current proposal to ban Russian military personnel from the EU see it as a common sense security measure in response to the Kremlin's escalating hybrid war against Europe, write Elena Davlikanova and Tatiana Vorozhko.

Conflict Cybersecurity

UkraineAlert

Jun 25, 2026

Belarus is quietly preparing to play a larger role in Russia’s Ukraine war

By Hanna Liubakova

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka is not enthusiastic about the prospect of joining Russia’s Ukraine invasion, but he appears to be steadily building up his country’s military capacity in case he finds himself pushed more directly into the war, writes Hanna Liubakova.

Belarus Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 25, 2026

The West can learn from Ukraine’s AI future vision beyond the battlefield

By Andrew D’Anieri

The US and Europe are already looking to Ukraine for the next generation of defense technologies. As Western countries debate their own AI strategies, they would likewise do well to examine Ukraine as a similar starting point for further innovation, writes Andrew D’Anieri.

Artificial Intelligence Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2026

Putin vowed to demilitarize Ukraine. Instead, he created a major military power.

By Peter Dickinson

When Putin launched the full-scale invasion in 2022, he identified the “demilitarization” of Ukraine as one his two primary war aims. It is now clear that he has failed in the most spectacular fashion imaginable, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2026

Ukraine tightens drone blockade of Russian-occupied Crimea

By Maksym Beznosiuk, William Dixon

Ukraine is currently conducting a mid-range drone strike campaign aiming to cut access to Russian-occupied Crimea and place the Black Sea peninsula under a logistics lockdown, write Maksym Beznosiuk and William Dixon.

Conflict Defense Technologies

UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2026

Russia intensifies shadow war to undermine support for Ukraine

By Zahar Hryniv

Russia is waging an escalating shadow war against the West as the Kremlin attempts to intimidate Europe and deter further support for Ukraine, writes Zahar Hryniv.

Conflict Cybersecurity

UkraineAlert

Jun 18, 2026

Putin’s obsession with ‘denazifying’ Ukraine makes peace impossible

By Peter Dickinson

Putin’s obsession with “denazifying” Ukraine makes a mockery of efforts to portray the Russian invasion as a mere land grab and helps explain why there has been no meaningful progress toward peace despite more than a year of US-led efforts, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jun 18, 2026

Ukrainian drones are cutting Russian logistics and reshaping the battlefield

By David Kirichenko

In recent months, Ukraine has dramatically expanded the use of mid-range drones to disrupt Russian logistics behind the front lines and shape the battlefield for future offensive operations, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

Jun 18, 2026

Ukraine begins EU membership talks amid skepticism over associate option

By Andreas Umland

Ukraine officially opened membership talks with the ‌European Union this week in a move hailed by Ukrainian officials as “a Rubicon” moment for the war-torn country. While this is welcome news for Kyiv, it remains unclear how long it could still take to actually join the EU, writes Andreas Umland.

Conflict Drones