Stay Updated

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 23, 2020

Ukraine’s economic target: From stabilization to growth

By Vladislav Inozemtsev

Ukraine has staged a strong economic recovery over the past few years but the question in 2020 is whether the new Zelenskyy government can lead the country's economy from stabilization to sustainable growth.

Economy & Business Fiscal and Structural Reform

UkraineAlert

Jan 22, 2020

Ukraine can feed Brexit Britain

By Bate C. Toms

The UK is Europe's biggest food importer and Ukraine is one of the continent's top agricultural producers. This makes a post-Brexit free trade deal a potentially big win for both countries.

Trade and tariffs Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jan 22, 2020

Bipartisan US support for Ukraine at risk as Republicans echo Kremlin

By Steven Pifer

Republicans seeking to defend President Trump have taken to accusing Ukraine of meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. This echoes Kremlin talking points and puts longstanding bipartisan US support for Ukraine at risk, says former US Ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer.

Politics & Diplomacy Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jan 21, 2020

Ukraine’s top five 2020 reform priorities

By Ilona Sologoub

The Zelenskyy government has outlined an ambitious reform agenda for 2020 but will they live up to the expectations of an electorate hungry for change? These five key reform areas will give a good indication of the new government's reformist credentials.

Corruption Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jan 20, 2020

A frozen conflict may be Ukraine’s best option

By James Brooke

Many hoped President Zelenskyy's April 2019 election could break the deadlock in peace talks with Russia. However, it now looks like the best Ukraine can expect is a transition from hot war to frozen conflict. That may not be such a bad outcome, argues James Brooke.

Conflict Russia

UkraineAlert

Jan 20, 2020

Is Belarus Putin’s next target?

By Diane Francis

Vladimir Putin has been turning up the pressure on Belarus in recent months as Moscow seeks to move forward with plans to merge the country into a so-called Union State with Russia, but Minsk is proving evasive. Will Belarus be the scene of Putin's next big foreign policy adventure?

Belarus Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Jan 16, 2020

Startup culture in a frontline city

By Diane Francis

1991 Mariupol is a new startup hub located a stone's throw away from the frontlines of Ukraine's undeclared war with Russia. Can tech innovation create opportunities for young Ukrainians facing an uncertain future due to Kremlin aggression?

Education Technology & Innovation

UkraineAlert

Jan 16, 2020

Think again

By John E. Herbst

In a recent National Interest article, George Beebe dismisses US policy on Ukraine as “steeped in illusions” and argues for a “sensible alternative.” It is a nice try, but what he comes up with does not pass muster.

Conflict NATO

UkraineAlert

Jan 15, 2020

Putin makes changes as Russia stagnates

By Michael Newton

With Putin’s presidential term set to end in 2024 and parliamentary elections to take place in late 2021, Medvedev’s resignation and Putin’s proposed changes come at a time when the Russian president is looking to secure a possibly uncertain political future.

Politics & Diplomacy Russia

UkraineAlert

Jan 15, 2020

Zelenskyy’s vision for Ukrainian national identity

By Bohdan Nahaylo

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s New Year 2020 address to the nation was a bold call for unity at a time of acute sensitivity towards issues of national identity – but is Ukraine ready to embrace diversity with country still facing an existential threat from ongoing Russian aggression?

Politics & Diplomacy Ukraine

spotlight

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.

Follow us on social media
and support our work

Content

UkraineAlert

Jan 11, 2021

US sanctions Giuliani-linked Ukrainians over Russian bid to influence 2020 election

By Anders Åslund

The US Department of the Treasury has imposed sanctions on seven Ukrainians who stand accused of meddling in the recent American presidential election campaign on behalf of Russia.

Elections Russia

UkraineAlert

Jan 9, 2021

Russia remains unwilling to end seven-year Ukraine war

By Oleksii Reznikov

Ukraine has repeatedly demonstrated its readiness to make compromises in order to secure peace with Russia but Moscow has so far refused to reciprocate, argues Ukraine's Deputy PM Oleksii Reznikov.

Conflict Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding

UkraineAlert

Jan 7, 2021

How to improve EU-Ukraine energy cooperation in 2021

By Olga Bielkova

Ukraine's GTSOU gas transportation system operator is hoping to expand cooperation with European partners in 2021 as part of efforts to diversify beyond the prior focus on Russian gas transit to EU markets.

Eastern Europe Energy Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jan 7, 2021

What is Ukraine’s economic outlook for 2021?

By Anders Åslund

Without judicial reform or an increase in investment, there is little reason to expect any economic growth in Ukraine during 2021 beyond the gains arising from the post-coronavirus rebound.

Coronavirus Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

Jan 7, 2021

Ukraine counting on Biden’s support in struggle against Russian authoritarianism

By Kira Rudik

Many Ukrainians have high hopes for US President-elect Joe Biden. They see cause for encouragement in Biden’s nuanced understanding of Ukrainian affairs honed through years of engagement.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jan 5, 2021

All roads lead to Ukraine in Putin’s global hybrid war

By Peter Dickinson

For the past seven years, Russia has been waging a campaign of hybrid hostilities against the West. This confrontation began in Ukraine, and events in Ukraine remain central to what has become a new Cold War.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jan 2, 2021

US imposes new sanctions to kill off Putin’s pet pipeline

By Diane Francis

New US sanctions look set to thwart Russian efforts to complete a strategically important natural gas pipeline that would greatly strengthen the Kremlin's control over European energy supplies.

European Union Geopolitics & Energy Security

UkraineAlert

Dec 22, 2020

Death of Kharkiv mayor Kernes marks end of era

By Brian Mefford

The recent death of long-serving Kharkiv mayor Hennadiy Kernes marks the end of an era for the eastern Ukrainian city and ushers in a period of political jockeying in the months ahead.

Coronavirus Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Dec 21, 2020

Ukraine’s education reforms are at risk of politicization

By Andrew D’Anieri

The controversial recent confirmation of Serhiy Shkarlet as Ukrainian Minister of Education has dragged the country's ambitious education sector reform agenda firmly into the political fray.

Education Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 21, 2020

Ukraine on trial

By Adrian Karatnycky

Fears are mounting that the prosecution of Maidan protest movement leader Tetyana Chornovol on murder charges is an attempt to put Ukraine's entire future as a European democracy on trial.

Democratic Transitions Resilience & Society