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

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

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

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

May 20, 2020

Ukraine’s road agency head: Vast infrastructure upgrade continues despite pandemic

By Oleksandr Kubrakov

The coronavirus crisis is creating huge challenges for the global economy and Ukraine is no exception. Nevertheless, the most ambitious construction undertaking in independent Ukraine’s history remains very much on track.

Coronavirus Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

May 20, 2020

Walking a tight rope, one year of Zelenskyy’s foreign policy

By Adair Appleton

One year ago, Zelenskyy promised to make Ukraine rich, slay corruption, and bring peace to eastern Ukraine. Skeptics will say that his moves amounted to nothing, but others are impressed that he’s putting in the work.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

May 18, 2020

Zelenskyy’s first year: New beginning or false dawn?

By Steven Pifer

Volodymyr Zelenskyy generated a wave of optimism when he became Ukraine’s sixth president on May 20, 2019. One year on, it is not clear whether his presidency will prove to be genuinely transformational or just another false dawn.

Democratic Transitions Ukraine

UkraineAlert

May 18, 2020

Ukrainians reject modern Russia’s WWII victory cult as geopolitical divide deepens

By Victor Tregubov

A nationwide survey conducted on the eve of this year's WWII anniversary events found that a clear majority of Ukrainians now blame the USSR together with the Nazis for sparking the Second World War.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

May 17, 2020

From Stalin to Putin: The Crimean Tatars face a new era of Kremlin persecution

By Polina Sadovskaya and Veronika Pfeilschifter

As the Crimean Tatar community marks the seventy-sixth anniversary of their Soviet deportation, an entire generation faces the prospect of another year living in terror at home in Russian-occupied Crimea or forced into exile.

Conflict Human Rights

UkraineAlert

May 15, 2020

Why I’m optimistic Georgia’s reforms can change Ukraine

By Mikheil Saakashvili

Former Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili explains why he believes his experience reforming Georgia can help Ukraine accomplish its own post-Soviet transition towards European prosperity.

Democratic Transitions Political Reform

UkraineAlert

May 13, 2020

US still determined to block Putin’s pet pipeline project

By Diane Francis

Vladimir Putin hasn’t given up on his grand strategy to dominate European gas markets but the US remains committed to preventing Russia from completing the strategically vital Nord Stream 2 pipeline to Germany.

Eastern Europe Geopolitics & Energy Security

UkraineAlert

May 13, 2020

Ukraine approves crucial anti-oligarch banking law

By Anders Åslund

Ukrainian MPs have adopted legislation to prevent former owners regaining banks nationalized during recent reforms. The move is a blow to Ukrainian oligarch Ihor Kolomoiskiy and paves the way for a new IMF program.

Corruption Economy & Business

UkraineAlert

May 12, 2020

Putin’s Russia has weaponized World War II

By Volodymyr Yelchenko

Vladimir Putin has turned the Red Army role in WWII into a victory cult designed to rebuild post-Soviet Russia's national pride and provide justification for Moscow's aggressive foreign policy in Ukraine and beyond.

Conflict Eastern Europe

UkraineAlert

May 12, 2020

Can Saakashvili rescue Ukraine’s reform agenda?

By Peter Dickinson

President Zelenskyy has appointed former Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili to lead Ukraine's National Reform Council. What might this appointment mean for the country's stuttering reform agenda?

Democratic Transitions Political Reform