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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

Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

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
Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

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
Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

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

Jul 20, 2022

Ukraine confronts Kremlin infiltration threat at unreformed state bodies

By Andrew D’Anieri

Last week’s dismissal by President Zelenskyy of two key figures from Ukraine’s state security and prosecution services has highlighted the threat posed by Kremlin agents infiltrating unreformed Ukrainian state bodies.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 19, 2022

Ukraine’s vibrant civil society deserves key role in post-war transformation

By Mykhailo Zhernakov

Ukraine’s vibrant civil society sector is the country’s secret weapon in its civilizational struggle against Putin’s Russia and should be a key focus of support efforts as the international community looks to rebuild Ukraine.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2022

The West must take urgent steps to prevent Ukrainian economic collapse

By Bate Toms

Recent talk of a Ukrainian Marshall Plan for the post-war period is certainly welcome but Ukraine also needs action from the West without delay to avoid a potentially catastrophic economic collapse while the war continues.

Conflict
Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2022

Canada accused of betraying Ukraine and helping Russia break sanctions

By Diane Francis

Canada is facing accusations of bowing to Kremlin blackmail after agreeing to lift sanctions imposed over Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine invasion in order to secure Russian gas supplies to Germany.

Conflict
Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

UkraineAlert

Jul 15, 2022

Killer in the Kremlin: New book explores Vladimir Putin’s bloody reign

By John Sweeney

British journalist John Sweeney’s new book “Killer In The Kremlin” offers a chilling portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin as a menace to global security whose entire reign has been marked by death and destruction.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 15, 2022

EU candidate status is an historic opportunity to transform Ukraine

By Kira Rudik

The decision to grant Ukraine official EU candidate status does not guarantee the country’s future membership but the process of further integration can dramatically boost Ukraine’s domestic reform momentum, writes Kira Rudik.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 13, 2022

Building a better Ukraine: Rule of law is essential for post-war prosperity

By Bohdan Vitvitsky

Few would argue that the rule of law is essential for Ukraine’s post-war prosperity. However, previous efforts to implement judicial reforms have fallen short. What is required to make sure next time is different?

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 13, 2022

Putin weaponizes Russian passports in his genocidal war against Ukraine

By Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin’s decision to expand fast-track Russian passport distribution to the whole of Ukraine is a clear signal that his imperial appetite is not limited to the Ukrainian regions currently under Kremlin control.

Conflict
Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jul 9, 2022

Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine at risk from infections and epidemics

By Ihor Kuzin

Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and occupation of around 20% of the country has produced a range of major public health challenges that require urgent international attention, writes Ihor Kuzin.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 8, 2022

Putin’s energy weapon: Europe must be ready for Russian gas blackmail

By Aura Sabadus

Disarming Putin’s energy weapon: Europe can disconnect from Russia’s gas supplies sooner than some would suggest providing it mobilizes the right human and financial resources to work in that direction.

Conflict
Energy Markets & Governance
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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
Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

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
Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

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
Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

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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UkraineAlert

Jun 9, 2020

Farcical Putin referendum confirms Russia-Ukraine geopolitical divorce

By Victor Tregubov

Russia’s farcical Putin referendum in many ways confirms the country’s geopolitical divorce from democratic Ukraine and underlines the growing distance between two countries that were once widely seen as virtually indivisible.

Democratic Transitions
Russia

UkraineAlert

Jun 4, 2020

Ukraine needs a whole new approach to labor migration

By Lesia Dubenko

Millions of Ukrainians have sought employment abroad since 2014, creating one of the largest labor migrations in modern European history. This process is now reviving, creating new challenges for Ukraine.

Coronavirus
Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

Jun 4, 2020

Moderate Zelenskyy makes a mockery of the Kremlin’s anti-Ukraine propaganda

By Vitaliy Syzov

Ukraine's President Zelenskyy has distanced himself from the national identity politics of his predecessor Petro Poroshenko. This has significantly complicated Russian efforts to demonize "nationalistic" Ukraine.

Conflict
Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jun 3, 2020

Bringing startup culture to the Ukrainian parliament

By Diane Francis

Bringing startup culture to Ukrainian politics: 34-year-old Kira Rudik is a Ukrainian IT industry superstar who entered parliament last summer and now leads the country’s reformist Holos Party.

Democratic Transitions
Technology & Innovation

UkraineAlert

Jun 2, 2020

Trump’s G7 invite for Putin will encourage more war

By Yuliia Popyk

US President Donald Trump wants to invite Vladimir Putin to the next G7 summit, despite the Russian leader's refusal to end the aggression against Ukraine that led to his initial suspension from G8 in 2014.

Conflict
France

UkraineAlert

May 31, 2020

To stop Putin, the Western world must revisit the 1994 Budapest Memorandum

By Oleksii Reznikov

Ukraine's Deputy PM for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Oleksii Reznikov says trust must be rebuilt before there can be peace with Russia. Returning to the framework of the Budapest Memorandum would be a step in the right direction, he argues.

Conflict
Nuclear Nonproliferation

UkraineAlert

May 28, 2020

Zelenskyy at home: One year of domestic reform?

By Adrian Hoefer

Since his election last year, President Zelenskyy and his government have pledged to transform and energize Ukraine’s economy. Those pledges have not been realized. Why, and what should the government do this year to live up to those promises?

Economy & Business
Political Reform

UkraineAlert

May 28, 2020

Can post-pandemic Ukraine prevent another exodus?

By Michael Druckman

As Ukraine looks towards the post-coronavirus recovery period, the country needs to think hard about how it intends to persuade millions of Ukrainian migrant workers to build their futures at home.

Coronavirus
Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

May 27, 2020

Ukrainians who fled Putin face new pandemic realities

By Iryna Matviyishyn

For the estimated 1.4 million Ukrainians internally displaced by Putin's war, the past six years have brought traumatic change. These IDPs are now facing the further challenge of the coronavirus pandemic.

Conflict
Coronavirus

UkraineAlert

May 26, 2020

Ukrainian local elections: Will Zelenskyy win again?

By Mykola Vorobiov

Ukraine will hold local elections in October 2020. This will be the first big test for President Zelenskyy and his Servant of the People party since landslide victories in 2019's presidential and parliamentary votes.

Democratic Transitions
Elections
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