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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

Jan 10, 2023

Putin’s faltering Ukraine invasion exposes limits of Russian propaganda

By Victor Tregubov

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was supposed to be a short and victorious war. Instead, it has transformed him into a pariah and shattered Russia’s reputation as a military superpower. How could he have got it so wrong?

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Jan 8, 2023

Ukraine’s nation-building progress spells doom for Putin’s Russian Empire

By Dennis Soltys

Many observers seek to blame Putin's Ukraine invasion on his imperial ambitions or Kremlin fears over NATO expansion, but in reality the war is a desperate Russian response to Ukraine's historic nation-building progress.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jan 8, 2023

Rebuilding Ukraine the right way

By Stephen Blank

Ukraine's post-war reconstruction will be one of the largest international undertakings of the twenty-first century. The Ukrainian authorities must begin laying the foundations for future success before Putin is defeated.

Conflict Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

Jan 4, 2023

Ukraine’s growing veteran community will shape the country’s future

By Aleksander Cwalina, Benton Coblentz

Ukraine's rapidly expanding veteran community can make a major contribution to the country's post-war future but will require a range of support measures in order to reintegrate into civilian life successfully.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jan 3, 2023

Putin is preparing for a long war

By Alexander Motyl

Vladimir Putin used his traditional New Year address on December 31 to mobilize the Russian public for a long war in Ukraine while warning that the West is intent on "destroying Russia," writes Alexander Motyl.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jan 2, 2023

Digitalization and transparency are vital for Ukraine’s reconstruction

By Oleksandra Azarkhina

Ukraine's reconstruction will depend on digitalization and the recruitment of motivated personnel from the military, writes Deputy Minister for Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Development Oleksandra Azarkhina.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Dec 26, 2022

Eight reasons for Ukrainian optimism in 2023

By Brian Mefford

Ukrainians have experienced an incredibly traumatic year but the country enters 2023 with reason for cautious optimism that Vladimir Putin's criminal invasion can be decisively defeated, writes Brian Mefford.

European Union NATO

UkraineAlert

Dec 25, 2022

Bakhmut: Fortress of freedom

By Andriy Yermak

Western support for Ukraine must remain strong in 2023 to prevent a Russian victory that would fuel a global authoritarian revival, warns the head of Ukraine's Office of the President, Andriy Yermak.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Dec 22, 2022

Will Putin force Belarus to join the Russian invasion of Ukraine?

By Alesia Rudnik

Vladimir Putin traveled to Minsk this week for the first time in three-and-a-half years, fueling speculation that he is seeking to pressure Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka into joining the failing invasion of Ukraine.

Belarus Conflict

UkraineAlert

Dec 22, 2022

Ukraine must be given the tools to stop Vladimir Putin in 2023

By Kira Rudik

As we approach the start of a new year, it is vital that Ukraine’s Western partners demonstrate a long-term commitment to defeating Russia, writes Ukrainian MP and Holos Party leader Kira Rudik.

Conflict European Union

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Content

UkraineAlert

Nov 16, 2021

New book recounts prisoner torture in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine

By Andrew D’Anieri

A new book by Ukrainian journalist Stanislav Aseyev seeks to raise international awareness of the secret prisons in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine where detainees are subjected to grave human rights abuses.

Conflict Human Rights

Event Recap

Nov 16, 2021

What happened to the Kyiv Post?

By Eurasia Center

On November 8, a single article appeared on the Kyiv Post's website. It's message: The newspaper would shut down for a "for a short time." But there might be more to the story. Melinda Haring dives in with former writers and editors with the Kyiv Post.

Civil Society Media

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2021

Escalating Belarus border crisis could pose a security threat to Ukraine

By Bohdan Nahaylo

The escalating migrant crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border poses a potential threat to Ukraine, which shares a long and vulnerable 1,000 km border with Belarus and could serve as an alternative route into the EU.

Belarus Conflict

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2021

New US-Ukraine Charter underlines American commitment to Ukrainian security

By Anders Åslund

The new US-Ukraine Charter on Strategic Partnership adopted on November 10 underlines American support for Ukrainian security and US concerns over the possibility of further Russian aggression.

Disinformation Non-Traditional Threats

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2021

Ukraine’s Anti-Oligarch Law: President Zelenskyy’s populist power grab?

By Kira Rudik

Ukraine's anti-oligarch law is being trumpeted by President Zelenskyy's supporters as a move to reduce the influence of Ukraine’s oligarch elite. However, it looks more like a populist ploy to strengthen presidential powers, writes Holos leader Kira Rudik.

Corruption Media

UkraineAlert

Nov 11, 2021

Time to rediscover eastern Ukraine’s surprisingly cosmopolitan past

By Peter Dickinson

Moscow has long cultivated the myth of eastern Ukraine as an indivisible part of Russia’s ancestral heartlands but in reality the region has a surprisingly cosmopolitan past that makes a mockery of Kremlin propaganda claims.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2021

Nord Stream 2: Germany must listen to Ukrainian security concerns

By Olga Bielkova

Ukraine has requested a role in the German process to certify Nord Stream 2 amid fears in Kyiv that the pipeline could pave the wave for an escalation in ongoing Russian military aggression against Ukraine.

Conflict Energy Markets & Governance

UkraineAlert

Nov 8, 2021

De-oligarchization of Ukraine is President Zelenskyy’s top priority

By Andriy Yermak

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's anti-oligarch agenda holds the key to Ukraine's reform ambitions and is vital for the country's future national security, argues presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak.

Corruption Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2021

Ukraine’s anti-oligarch law could make President Zelenskyy too powerful

By David Clark

President Zelenskyy has trumpeted the country's new anti-oligarch law as a meaningful step towards curbing the power of Ukraine's oligarch class, but critics fear it may actually make Zelenskyy himself too powerful.

Corruption Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2021

Disarming Putin’s energy weapon: Ukraine must connect to EU grid

By Anders Åslund

With Vladimir Putin seeking to restrict energy supplies to Ukraine, it is increasingly clear that Kyiv must connect to the European electricity grid in order to reduce its vulnerability to Kremlin blackmail tactics.

Conflict Energy & Environment