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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

Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

UkraineAlert Sep 30, 2025

Putin’s dream of demilitarizing Ukraine has turned into his worst nightmare

By Peter Dickinson

Putin had hoped to demilitarize and decapitate the Ukrainian state, but his self-defeating invasion has inadvertently created the militarily powerful and fiercely independent Ukraine he feared most of all, writes Peter Dickinson.
Conflict Defense Technologies
Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

UkraineAlert Oct 2, 2025

Drone superpower Ukraine is teaching NATO how to defend against Russia

By David Kirichenko

Ukraine’s unrivaled experience of drone warfare makes it a key partner for NATO and an indispensable ally in the defense of Europe as the continent faces up to the mounting threat posed by an expansionist Russia, writes David Kirichenko.
Conflict Defense Technologies
Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

UkraineAlert Oct 14, 2025

Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure are a European problem

By Aura Sabadus

Russia’s strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure are no longer just a Ukrainian problem. Moscow’s bombing campaign will become a wider European issue unless more support is offered to Kyiv, writes Aura Sabadus.
Conflict Drones

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Apr 10, 2023

Russian nukes in Belarus: Putin’s creeping annexation continues

By Hanna Liubakova

Putin’s plan to place nukes in Belarus has been widely interpreted as as an escalation in his ongoing nuclear saber-rattling tactics but it will also greatly strengthen the Russian dictator’s grip over the neighboring country.

Belarus
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 8, 2023

Human wave tactics are demoralizing the Russian army in Ukraine

By Olivia Yanchik

Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has not gone according to plan but he still hopes to win a long war of attrition. However, Russia’s reliance on human wave tactics risks undermining morale within his invading army, writes Olivia Yanchik.

Conflict
Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Apr 6, 2023

NATO poses a threat to Russian imperialism not Russian security

By Peter Dickinson

Russia’s passive acceptance of neighboring Finland’s NATO membership raises serious questions over the Kremlin’s efforts to portray the invasion of Ukraine as a response to NATO expansion, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Apr 6, 2023

Anti-war Russians struggle to be heard

By Christopher Isajiw

The Kremlin has worked hard to create the impression of overwhelming Russian public support for the invasion of Ukraine but anti-war sentiment may become more visible if Putin’s army suffers further battlefield defeats, writes Christopher Isajiw.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 4, 2023

Russia’s Wagner Group is a feature not a bug of the Putin regime

By Allen Maggard

Russian private paramilitaries like the Wagner Group are a symptom of the institutionalized corruption at the heart of Putin’s regime and not just another instrument in Russia’s hybrid warfare toolbox, writes Allen Maggard.

Conflict
Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Apr 4, 2023

How to keep Western tech out of Russian weapons

By Aleksander Cwalina

The Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center convened a panel of experts for a virtual event in March to discuss how to prevent the use of Western technologies in Russian weapons, reports Aleksander Cwalina.

Arms Control
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 3, 2023

Pressuring Ukraine into a premature peace would only encourage Putin

By Andriy Zagorodnyuk

Efforts to pressure Ukraine into accepting a land-for-peace deal in order to end the war misunderstand Putin’s imperial ambitions and will only encourage further Russian aggression, writes Andriy Zagorodnyuk.

Conflict
Freedom and Prosperity

UkraineAlert

Mar 30, 2023

Putin’s nuclear saber-rattling is a sign of dangerous Russian desperation

By Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin’s latest bout of nuclear saber-rattling is a clear indication of Russia’s growing desperation as the invasion of Ukraine continues to unravel amid mounting military losses, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Mar 30, 2023

Russia faces long economic decline as isolated Putin turns to China

By Diane Francis

With most avenues for Western partnership indefinitely closed and Russian economic dependency on China growing rapidly, Putin’s talk of “economic sovereignty” is starting to sound very hollow, writes Diane Francis.

China
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Mar 29, 2023

Putin’s plan for a new Russian Empire includes both Ukraine and Belarus

By Taras Kuzio

A leaked document detailing Russia’s plans to absorb Belarus highlights the scale of Vladimir Putin’s imperial ambitions and provides insights into the true objectives behind the invasion of Ukraine, writes Taras Kuzio.

Belarus
Conflict
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spotlight

Resilience in the face of adversity

Ukraine’s transformation

Ukraine has moved tentatively toward an open society and market economy since independence. The country has held several democratic elections and made halting progress in addressing corruption and state control in its economy. Since the 2014 Maidan Revolution, Ukraine has undertaken significant governance and economic reform and moved decisively toward a Europe-Atlantic foreign policy. Since 2022, Ukraine has resiliently continued to advance some reforms despite fighting for its very existence against the full-scale Russian invasion.

Learn more about Ukraine
Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

UkraineAlert Dec 5, 2024

Ukraine’s entrepreneurial class can drive the country’s economic recovery

The Ukrainian SME sector has demonstrated remarkable wartime resilience and is poised to be at the forefront of efforts to create a modern, innovative, postwar economy, writes Anton Waschuk.

Read More
Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

UkraineAlert Oct 1, 2024

Ukraine needs international investors to maintain defense tech momentum

By Mykhailo Fedorov

Ukraine’s rapidly expanding defense tech sector can play a game-changing role in the war against Russia but Ukrainian companies need international investment, writes Ukraine’s Minister for Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.
Artificial Intelligence Conflict
Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

UkraineAlert Jun 13, 2024

Ukraine officially embraces English as historic westward pivot continues

By Oleksiy Goncharenko

By officially embracing English, Ukrainians aim to support their country’s historic pivot away from Moscow and return to the European community of nations, writes Oleksiy Goncharenko.
Civil Society Conflict

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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Content

BelarusAlert

Aug 4, 2021

Belarus dissident death in Ukraine fuels fears over Lukashenka death squads

By Brian Whitmore

The suspicious death of exiled Belarus dissident Vital Shyshou in Kyiv this week is fueling speculation over dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka's use of death squads to eliminate political opponents across Europe.

Belarus
Non-Traditional Threats

UkraineAlert

Aug 3, 2021

The next hot food destination is Ukraine

By Melinda Haring

It's only a matter of time before foodies the world over discover these gems in Ukraine.

Civil Society
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 27, 2021

Is Putin’s next big chance to take Ukraine now?

By Mark Temnycky

With the world distracted by the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is anyone paying attention to Ukraine's East? Distractions favor Putin, and he's taken advantage of nearly every major sporting event of the last 14 years to stun the world.

Conflict
Crisis Management

UkraineAlert

Jul 27, 2021

More backsliding in Kyiv

By Andrew D’Anieri

President Zelenskyy's exemption of infrastructure projects from standard tender procedures and oversight is a setback for reform. Yet the move has sparked necessary conversations on how to improve public procurement in Ukraine.

Corruption
Economy & Business
President Biden and Chancellor Merkel at a press conference at the White House.

UkraineAlert

Jul 27, 2021

Why is Biden letting Putin win?

By Diane Francis

Russia and Germany, enabled by a distracted and increasingly isolationist United States, trample Europe and ignore the wishes of Central and Eastern European and Baltic nation-states. What does the White House think it’s doing?

Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion
Geopolitics & Energy Security

UkraineAlert

Jul 20, 2021

Infrastructure cooperation could hold the key to Armenia’s future security

By Ani Yeghiazaryan

As the South Caucasus looks to move on following last year's Nagorno-Karabakh War, shared infrastructure projects could help foster greater regional stability and improve the chances for a sustainable peace.

Geopolitics & Energy Security
Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2021

UKRAINE AT 30: Andriy Shevchenko’s three decades as unofficial ambassador

By Peter Dickinson

No Ukrainian has done more to raise the country's international profile that footballer Andriy Shevchenko, who has been quite simply the most famous Ukrainian in the world since the early years of independence.

Resilience & Society
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2021

Ukraine takes a big step towards judicial reform

By Olena Halushka and Tetiana Shevchuk

Ukraine took a big step towards judicial reform on July 13 when MPs adopted laws that establish credible foundations for the reboot of the country’s deeply compromised legal system.

Civil Society
Corruption

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2021

Ukraine’s faltering efforts to privatize state-owned banks

By Mark Savchuk

The Ukrainian government is committed to reducing its estimated 55% stake in the country's banking system by overseeing the privatization of state-owned banks, but progress remains painfully slow.

Economy & Business
Financial Regulation

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2021

Naftogaz corporate governance is a national priority for Ukraine

By Andriy Boytsun

In recent months, developments at Ukraine’s national energy company, Naftogaz, have raised concerns over the country's broader post-Maidan drive to reform corporate governance at state-owned enterprises

Corruption
Energy Markets & Governance
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