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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 7, 2018

Why Ukraine Is Reappearing on US Investors’ Radar Screens

By Andy Hunder

When I was an eight-year-old boy growing up in London in the late 1970s, my schoolteacher asked our class to show on the map where in Britain our parents were born. When it was my turn, I walked to the other side of the blackboard where the world map hung and proudly exclaimed that my […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 7, 2018

Which New US Sanctions on Russia Are Likely?

By Anders Åslund

The US Congress has prepared numerous bills proposing new sanctions on Russia. Congress reacted sharply against President Donald Trump’s desire to ease existing sanctions. On July 28, 2017, the Senate voted 98-2 for the Combating America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which Trump quietly signed into law. CAATSA legislated already adopted sanctions on Russia, so […]

Russia

UkraineAlert

Aug 6, 2018

Why Does Senator Rand Paul Trust the Deepest State of All?

By Bohdan Klid

Three weeks ago, Republican Senator Rand Paul leapt to the defense of US President Donald Trump following fierce criticism over his comments at the July 16 press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. Known for his libertarian views, Paul urged the president to revoke the security clearances of former CIA director John Brennan […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 6, 2018

Sure, Ukraine Is Still a Mess, But the Fight Rages On

By Melinda Haring

Bloomberg recently ran an in-depth story titled, “Four Years after Its Revolution, Ukraine Is Still a Mess.” I can’t argue with the headline, but it overlooks the many efforts and individuals who are still fighting to fix Ukraine. Three of those individuals engaged in the fight spent most of July in Washington, DC, as James […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 1, 2018

Even with ProZorro, we should expect the same old thing when it comes to privatization in Ukraine

By Paul Thomas

The Ukrainian government should be commended for its recent improvements to the privatization process but it must, after twenty-five years, finally adopt a privatization strategy that benefits the economy and not just the budget.

Economy & Business Fiscal and Structural Reform

UkraineAlert

Aug 1, 2018

How One Entrepreneur Is Changing Ukraine One Bowl of Borscht at a Time

By Kateryna Kruk

A successful entrepreneur, graduate of the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, winner of a popular cooking show, social media influencer, and brand chief at several Kyiv restaurants, it would seem that thirty-one year old Ievgen Klopotenko has it all. However, few know that his most ambitious plan isn’t about business. He wants to change […]

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2018

If Trump Wants to Show He’s Tough on Russia, Here’s What He Should Do Next

By Roman Sohn and Ariana Gic

On July 25, the United States reaffirmed its rejection of Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. In the Crimea Declaration, the United States recognizes that by annexing Crimea, Russia violated the fundamental principle of the United Nations Charter by using force against the territorial integrity and political independence of Ukraine, and calls on […]

International Organizations Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2018

Why It’s Too Soon to Celebrate Ukraine’s New National Security Law

By Lada L. Roslycky and Olena Tregub

Ukraine’s Soviet-based national security framework has finally been replaced. Ukraine’s Rada passed the bill on June 21 and its passage was greeted with a mix of praise and skepticism. The US State Department publicly welcomed Ukraine’s new national security law, noting that the framework will increase cooperation with NATO, and its full implementation will deepen […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2018

Good Things Are Happening in Ukraine, Even if They Don’t Make Headlines

By Tim Ash

Ukraine just got a big win. On July 25, the International Monetary Fund signaled its support for Ukraine’s amended plans to create an Anticorruption Court. The Rada passed the original bill in June and amended it on July 12 to address concerns subsequently raised by the IMF.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 26, 2018

Why Is Ukraine Giving Fugitive Oligarch Dmytro Firtash a $1 Billion Windfall?

By Oleksandr Kharchenko

Editor’s note: On July 27, it was announced that implementation of the gas transportation system code has been delayed until October 1. The problems that Kharchenko outlines below with the new code still apply.  Christmas comes early this year for Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash. On August 1, the tycoon may pocket about $1 billion through […]

Ukraine

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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

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

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2021

Ukraine faces energy crisis as Putin weaponizes gas and coal supplies

By Aura Sabadus

As the winter season draws closer, Ukraine faces a looming energy crisis on multiple fronts which could lead to domestic political instability and deepen the country’s dependence on Vladimir Putin's Russia.

Conflict Energy & Environment

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2021

Ukraine MPs fight back against fake Covid vaccination certificates

By Oleksandra Ustinova

As Ukraine grapples with a mounting Covid-19 death toll and low vaccination rates, the country's MPs aim to adopt tougher regulations targeting the thriving Ukrainian black market for fake vaccination certificates.

Coronavirus Corruption

UkraineAlert

Nov 2, 2021

Putin’s Ukraine War: Russian MP recalls efforts to push civil war myth

By Peter Dickinson

Russian MP Alexander Borodai's frank recent comments about Russia's responsibility for the war in Ukraine underline the current sense of impunity in Moscow and expose the absurdity of Russia's ongoing denials.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Nov 2, 2021

Ukraine’s dangerous Winter Olympic obsession

By Nicholas Bell, Lukas Straumann

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has declared his intention to bring the Winter Olympics to the country, but environmentalists fear the initiative will cause irreparable damage to some of the most valuable mountain ecosystems in Europe.

Climate Change & Climate Action Energy & Environment

UkraineAlert

Nov 2, 2021

Two years of Lifeline Ukraine

By Paul Niland

Since it was launched in October 2019, Lifeline Ukraine has evolved from its original focus on support for Ukrainian combat veterans into a fully-fledged national suicide prevention hotline.

Conflict Human Rights