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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

Sep 17, 2026

Ukraine can do more to counter Russia’s illicit finance threat

By Matthew McGlynn

For more than four years, Ukraine has impressed global audiences with the country’s ability to defend itself against Russia on land, at sea, and in the air. Illicit finance is another important front in the fight against Russian aggression, writes Matthew McGlynn.

Conflict Cybersecurity

UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2026

Putin is escalating against NATO but a Baltic incursion remains unlikely

By James Rice

The recent escalation in Russian gray zone aggression across Europe has sparked a lively debate over how far the Kremlin may be prepared to go, but a Russian attack on the Baltic states remains unlikely, writes James Rice.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Sep 15, 2026

With Putin overextended in Ukraine, Armenia is turning away from Russia

By Joseph Epstein

Every day Ukraine keeps fighting, Russian influence grows weaker in the countries of the ex-USSR that Moscow refers to as the “near abroad.” Nowhere is this Russian retreat clearer than in Armenia, writes Joseph Epstein.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Sep 13, 2026

Learning from Ukraine’s unrivaled experience of Russian cyber warfare

By Iryna Volnytska

No country in the world today knows more about Russian cyber warfare than Ukraine, but further steps are required in order to help Kyiv’s partners make the most of Ukraine’s unrivaled experience, writes Iryna Volnytska.

Conflict Cybersecurity

UkraineAlert

Sep 11, 2026

Ukrainian police are preventing Russia from turning civilians into saboteurs

By Andrii Niebytov, Clara Kaluderovic

Since spring 2024, Russia has been waging a campaign far behind the front lines featuring arson, sabotage, and terrorist attacks using Ukrainians who are recruited online, deceived, and discarded, write Andrii Niebytov and Clara Kaluderovic.

Conflict Infrastructure Protection

UkraineAlert

Sep 10, 2026

Russia’s escalating bombing campaign is terrorizing Ukrainian schoolchildren

By Shelby Magid

Russia's escalating bombardment of Ukrainian cities is terrorizing a generation of Ukrainian schoolchildren who are being prevented from attending classes or forced to spend days in bomb shelters, writes Shelby Magid.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Sep 10, 2026

As Russia’s invasion falters, Putin boasts of imaginary victories

By Peter Dickinson

Putin was caught lying about imaginary Russian victories again in September. His habit of exaggerating battlefield gains reflects mounting unease over the credibility gap between the Kremlin’s superpower pretensions and his army’s underwhelming performance in Ukraine, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Sep 8, 2026

Ukrainian drone strikes are disarming Russia’s energy weapon

By Ana Lejava

For years, Russia wielded its energy capacity as a weapon against its neighbors to manipulate, coerce, and control. Ukraine’s strategic bombing campaign is now turning this energy weapon against Moscow itself, writes Ana Lejava.

Central Asia Conflict

UkraineAlert

Sep 8, 2026

Putin welcomes Trump’s peace envoys but has no intention of ending the war

By Peter Dickinson

Trump’s envoys continue to discuss win-win scenarios, but Putin is playing a zero sum game. His invasion of Ukraine is not a land grab or a geopolitical real estate deal. It is an attempt to reverse the Soviet collapse and revive the Russian Empire, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Sep 3, 2026

Putin cannot defeat NATO but he could divide and discredit the alliance

By Peter Dickinson

If Russian President Vladimir Putin decides to attack NATO, his goal will be to divide and discredit the alliance rather than actually defeating it, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Policy

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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.

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UkraineAlert

Dec 4, 2021

How anti-reform messages are replacing pro-Russian rhetoric on Ukrainian TV

By Oleksandr Yermakov, Olena Halushka

With openly pro-Russian propaganda no longer effective in today's Ukraine, the country's remaining Kremlin supporters are now focusing their efforts on promoting anti-Western narratives in the Ukrainian media.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Dec 3, 2021

Europe’s future will be decided in Ukraine

By Oleksii Reznikov

The international community must urgently demonstrate its resolve to punish Russia in order to deter a full-scale invasion of Ukraine that would plunge Europe into chaos, warns Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Dec 2, 2021

Russian threat should revive Ukraine’s stalled domestic reform efforts

By Denis MacShane

The threat of a major escalation in Russian aggression should help revive Ukraine's stalled domestic reform efforts and push the country towards the transformation that Ukrainians have been demanding for decades.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Dec 2, 2021

Time to stop appeasing Putin and confront Russia’s imperial ambitions

By Paul Grod

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that he will continue pursuing policies of imperial aggression against Ukraine until he is decisively confronted, argues Ukrainian World Congress President Paul Grod.

Belarus Conflict

UkraineAlert

Dec 1, 2021

Not the time for Nord Stream 2 nonsense

By John E. Herbst

A fascinating game is afoot behind closed doors on Capitol Hill. The fate of Nord Stream 2 may hang in the balance.

Geopolitics & Energy Security Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 30, 2021

Transforming Ukraine into an international manufacturing hub

By Sergiy Tsivkach

Ukraine is taking steps to build on the country's huge potential as a major international manufacturing hub and is now seeking to attract international investment that can drive further economic growth.

Economy & Business Education

UkraineAlert

Nov 30, 2021

Is the new German government good news for Ukraine?

By Bohdan Nahaylo

The sun is finally setting on Germany’s Merkel era and a new coalition government is poised to take over. What will this change mean for Germany’s policies towards Russia, Ukraine and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline?

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Nov 30, 2021

Nord Stream 2 will test new German government’s European solidarity

By Olga Bielkova

If the new German government does not block Vladimir Putin's Nord Stream 2 pipeline weapon, Ukraine will be irreversibly weakened while Germany and Europe as a whole will be sleepwalking into a perpetual gas crunch.  

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Nov 28, 2021

EU regulations may yet disarm Vladimir Putin’s pipeline weapon

By Diane Francis

Russian President Vladimir Putin is pushing hard to secure fast track certification for his Nord Stream 2 pipeline, but these efforts will likely prove no match for the EU’s anti-trust laws and regulatory system.

European Union Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

UkraineAlert

Nov 27, 2021

Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine obsession could spark a major European war

By Andriy Zagorodnyuk, Alexander Khara

Russian President Vladimir Putin's Ukraine obsession could spark the largest European conflict since WWII. With Russian troops massed on the Ukrainian border, Western leaders must demonstrate their readiness to back Ukraine and impose crushing costs on the Kremlin.

Conflict Cybersecurity