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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

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

UkraineAlert

Nov 23, 2021

How to Deter Russia Now

By Daniel Fried, John E. Herbst, Alexander Vershbow

With Russian troops once more massing on the Ukrainian border, the United States and Europe must make clear to the Kremlin that they stand with Ukraine and will impose serious costs in the event of an offensive.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Nov 23, 2021

Vladimir Putin is testing the “weak” West in Ukraine and Poland

By Taras Kuzio

Russia's current military build-up on the Ukrainian border is part of Vladimir Putin's hybrid war against the democratic world and an attempt to exploit what many in the Kremlin perceive to be Western "weakness."

Belarus Conflict

UkraineAlert

Nov 21, 2021

Vladimir Putin’s slow-motion annexation of east Ukraine continues

By Peter Dickinson

As international leaders and the world’s media speculate over Moscow’s latest military build-up on the Ukrainian border, Russian President Vladimir Putin is quietly proceeding with the slow-motion annexation of east Ukraine.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Nov 20, 2021

Defensive Putin accuses West of ignoring Russian red lines

By Anders Åslund

Russian President Vladimir Putin's November 18 foreign policy speech to Russian diplomats was one of the most defensive performances of his 21-year reign, argues Anders Åslund.

Conflict National Security

UkraineAlert

Nov 18, 2021

Why wartime Ukraine’s defense minister must be a civilian

By Andriy Zagorodnyuk

The recent appointment of Oleksiy Reznikov as Ukraine’s new defense minister is a step in the right direction away from the Soviet model towards NATO standards of civilian control over the Ukrainian armed forces.

Defense Industry Defense Policy

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

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UkraineAlert

Jun 14, 2021

Geopolitical weapon: Putin’s pipeline nears completion

By Benjamin Schmitt

This week's summit meeting between Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin may be one of the last opportunities for the US to take a stand against the Kremlin's controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.

Geopolitics & Energy Security Russia

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2021

NATO must stand with Ukraine against Russian aggression

By Paul Grod

NATO's 2008 decision to deny Ukraine a Membership Action Plan paved the way for Putin's 2014 attack. NATO leaders must now back Ukraine to prevent a further escalation in Russia's war on the post-1991 settlement.

Conflict NATO Partnerships

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2021

Pro-Kremlin propaganda in Ukraine changes tone

By Peter Pomerantsev, Inna Nelles, Volodymyr Yermolenko, Angelina Kariakina

Pro-Kremlin propaganda in Ukraine is changing. Praising Putin is a harder sell since the 2014 invasion, so now the focus is less on boosting Russia and more about making the West look just as bad.

Disinformation Media

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2021

Ukraine must do more to regain the West’s trust

By Kira Rudik

The coming week will underline the shortcomings of President Zelenskyy’s foreign policy, with Ukraine left on the sidelines as a series of crucial international summits take place that will directly impact the country’s future.

Corruption Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2021

Ukraine poised for historic land market breakthrough

By AJ Skiera

On July 1, 2021, Ukraine's new farmland market legislation will come into force, leading to real land ownership for around six million Ukrainians.

Corruption Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2021

Can Shevchenko bring Euro 2020 glory to Ukraine?

By Andrew Todos

The scandal over Ukraine’s Euro 2020 national football team shirt has energized the Ukrainian public at a time when the increasingly self-confident country is enjoying a prolonged period of nation-building progress.

Ukraine

BelarusAlert

Jun 9, 2021

Axis of autocrats: Belarus dictator Lukashenka backs Putin’s Ukraine war

By Brian Whitmore

The axis of autocrats in Eastern Europe continues to solidify as Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka bends over backwards to please Moscow by showing his support for Russia's war against Ukraine.

Belarus Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 8, 2021

Ukrainians fear betrayal over Putin’s pipeline

By Diane Francis

The prospect of NATO and US-Russia summits in mid-June is creating anxiety in Ukraine, which finds itself in the role of bystander despite the nation’s prominent position on the agendas for both meetings.

European Union Geopolitics & Energy Security

UkraineAlert

Jun 8, 2021

Ukraine’s post-2014 public procurement progress is under threat

By Max Nefyodov

An amendment adopted by the Ukrainian parliament on June 3 sets an awful precedent that could pave the way for further exemptions of major construction projects from Ukraine’s public procurement laws and regulations.

Corruption Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

Jun 7, 2021

Ukraine’s new football shirt leaves Russia furious

By Peter Dickinson

Russia has reacted with fury to Ukraine's new national football team jersey featuring a map of Ukraine. Kremlin anger is focused on the inclusion of Crimea, which is internationally recognized as part of Ukraine but has been under Russian occupation since 2014.

Conflict Disinformation