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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

Jul 28, 2022

Vogue diplomacy: First Lady Olena Zelenska is Ukraine’s secret weapon

By Peter Dickinson

Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska has recently sparked debate by posing for a Vogue photo shoot with celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz that some slammed as frivolous but others praised as a soft power masterstroke.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jul 28, 2022

Putin believed his own propaganda and fatally underestimated Ukraine

By Taras Kuzio

Vladimir Putin likes to pose as an expert on all things Ukrainian but in reality his understanding of Ukraine is hopelessly distorted by propaganda that has led him to fatally underestimate Ukrainian resilience.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 27, 2022

Ukraine’s tech excellence is playing a vital role in the war against Russia

By Valeriya Ionan

Ukraine's tech sector excellence is playing a key role in the war against Russia by providing rapid solutions to frontline challenges in ways that the more traditional top-down Russian military simply cannot match. 

Conflict Cybersecurity

UkraineAlert

Jul 26, 2022

More Russians must face personal sanctions over Ukraine invasion

By Oleksandr Novikov

As the world seeks ways to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Oleksandr Novikov of Ukraine’s National Agency on Corruption Prevention says dramatically expanded personal sanctions are the most effective available tool.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jul 25, 2022

Ukrainian footballers prepare to defy Putin with wartime premier league

By Andrew Todos

The Ukrainian Premier League is preparing to begin the 2022-23 season in August despite Russia's ongoing invasion of the country as Ukrainians turn to football to demonstrate their determination to defy the Kremlin.

Central Europe Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 21, 2022

Russian gas attack: Europe must not give in to Putin’s energy blackmail

By Diane Francis

The CEO of Ukrainian energy giant Naftogaz has told European leaders to prepare for a complete Russian gas cut off and warned that any concessions to the Kremlin will only serve to encourage further energy blackmail.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Jul 20, 2022

Ukraine can win

By Richard D. Hooker, Jr.

If the West takes active measures to ensure Ukraine can't defeat Putin's Russia, it won't. But if it commits to supplying the range of capabilities required for modern, high intensity warfare, Ukraine can win, and it will win.

Conflict European Union

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

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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

Jun 15, 2020

Zelenskyy keeps Ukraine on Euro-Atlantic course set by predecessor Poroshenko

By Oleksiy Goncharenko

Ukraine's President Zelenskyy has been highly critical of his predecessor Petro Poroshenko, but the ongoing war with Russia mean Zelenskyy has little option but to maintain Poroshenko's policies of Euro-Atlantic integration.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2020

Mission accomplished? Vakarchuk quits but his political party lives on

By Melinda Haring

Ukrainian rock legend Slava Vakarchuk has resigned as an MP less than one year after leading his reformist party into parliament for the first time. He claims it is "mission accomplished" - but will his party survive?

Democratic Transitions Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2020

Ukraine’s $7 billion Russian gas transit deal at risk amid claims of political pressure

By Aura Sabadus

Alleged political pressure targeting Ukraine's recently unbundled gas transmission system operator GTSO is threatening to undo Ukraine's energy sector reforms and derail a multi-billion dollar transit contract with Russia's Gazprom.

Corruption Energy Markets & Governance

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2020

Ukraine’s worst move yet

By Alan Riley

The Ministry of Finance “dismissed” Walter Boltz, the chair of the Ukrainian gas transmission system operator MGU. If that independence is undermined, Gazprom may pull the transit contract and with it the guaranteed fees that Ukraine needs.

Economy & Business Geopolitics & Energy Security

UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2020

IMF finally confirms new $5 billion program for Ukraine

By Anders Åslund

Ukraine's new $5 billion IMF program unleashes at least $2 billion of additional financing. This means Ukraine can feel quite safe regarding its external financial needs for 2020.

Coronavirus Crisis Management

UkraineAlert

Jun 9, 2020

Crimea could become an expensive liability for Putin

By Andreas Umland

The annexation of Crimea is proving expensive for the Kremlin. With Russia now facing an economic crisis fueled by the coronavirus pandemic and falling global energy prices, Putin's crowning glory may become a political liability.

Conflict Coronavirus

UkraineAlert

Jun 9, 2020

Minsk deadlock: West must reject Russian bid to limit Ukrainian sovereignty

By Duncan Allan

The Minsk agreements remain the only existing framework for ending the war in eastern Ukraine, but they rest on two irreconcilable interpretations: is Ukraine sovereign, as Ukrainians insist, or should its sovereignty be limited, as Russia demands?

Conflict Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding

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