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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

Feb 28, 2019

Q&A: Will scandal sink Poroshenko’s second term chances?

By Melinda Haring

On February 25, investigative journalists accused President Petro Poroshenko’s close associates of getting rich by smuggling spare parts for military equipment from Russia. The Bihus.Info report claims that the son of Oleh Hladkovskiy, deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, was the mastermind behind a scheme to buy spare parts from Russia in 2015. […]

Conflict Corruption

UkraineAlert

Feb 28, 2019

Which Ukrainians will lose most if Zelenskiy becomes president?

By Alexander J. Motyl

It goes without saying that all Ukrainians will be losers if and when a dreadfully inexperienced and politically ignorant comedian takes charge of Ukraine’s ship of state. As the economy goes into a tailspin, corruption flourishes, and Russian President Vladimir Putin bares his teeth, all Ukrainians will be far worse off than they are today. […]

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Feb 28, 2019

Ukraine’s athletes shine through national gloom

By Mark Temnycky

Five years after the Euromaidan, most analysis of Ukraine is grim. It tends to focus on the patchy reforms that have been put in place, the country’s endemic corruption, the ongoing war in its east, and the current unpredictable presidential election campaign. Hardly any of the coverage is positive. But that’s not the full picture. […]

Civil Society Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Feb 27, 2019

The Eurovision guide to modern Ukrainian history

By Peter Dickinson

Anyone who feels that Eurovision has become too politicized need look no further than Ukraine for confirmation. Nobody takes the song contest quite as seriously as the Ukrainians, who treat it as an extension of foreign policy complete with furious nationwide debates and heavy-handed government interventions. The latest scandal, which has seen the winner of […]

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Feb 26, 2019

The Audacity of Ulana Suprun

By Yuri Polakiwsky

There was a distinct sense of the theatrical inside and outside Kyiv’s Administrative Court #2 earlier this month as it decided the fate of Dr. Ulana Suprun, Ukraine’s acting minister of health. Leaving the proceedings, one was left with at least two seemingly absurd questions: what was this showdown all about and why was an […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2019

Is the Ukrainian Army Worthy of Greater Investment?

By Dennis Soltys

Last year Washington finally gave Kyiv the javelin missiles it had been begging for. But the javelins are mostly symbolic and won’t change much on the frontlines. For more than six months, Washington has been talking about giving Ukraine additional arms to improve its air and naval defenses. These arms are more likely after Russian […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2019

Let’s Make a Deal, Vladimir

By Johnny Herbst

The ongoing political standoff in Venezuela offers an opportunity for Washington to get something it wants: a democratically elected president in Venezuela and one less vocal Russian ally in its backyard. The Trump Administration recently announced that it plans to leave Syria without any conditions. Russia is involved in both Venezuela and Syria, so if […]

Russia Syria

UkraineAlert

Feb 21, 2019

Ukraine’s Leading Presidential Candidates (Minus Poroshenko) Promise to Fight Corruption

By Olena Haluskha

In Ukraine, demand for a genuine fight against corruption is still extremely high. According to recent surveys, voters name corruption as one of the three biggest problems in Ukraine. Nine out of ten Ukrainians consider grand political corruption the greatest threat to the country, while 80 percent are convinced that the main reason for corruption […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 21, 2019

Why Zelenskiy Is the Only Decent Choice for Ukraine

By Willem Aldershoff

Ukraine’s presidential elections present a difficult choice for those who want to see the country of 44 million finish what it started in 2014. Sadly all reliable opinion polls indicate that experienced reform candidates have no chance of winning. Former Defense Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko currently stands at around 8 percent and Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 19, 2019

Why a Zelenskyy presidency would be a disaster for Ukraine

By Alexander J. Motyl

The world is in turmoil, Russia occupies part of Ukraine, reforms in Ukraine still have a way to go, and democracy is in retreat in much of Europe. One would think Ukrainians would be worried. One would think they would want an experienced person at the helm. Instead, they may be about to elect the […]

Europe & Eurasia Ukraine

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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

UkraineAlert

May 26, 2020

Statement by former US Ambassadors to Ukraine

By Atlantic Council Eurasia Center

Former US ambassadors to Ukraine emphasize the importance of the US-Ukraine relationship.

Politics & Diplomacy Ukraine

UkraineAlert

May 24, 2020

Ukraine’s showbiz president shuns mainstream media

By Tetiana Gaiduk

Volodymyr Zelenskyy won the Ukrainian presidency with a campaign that positioned him as an everyman alternative to the country's discredited political elite, but a lack of media engagement now risks undermining his democratic credentials.

Democratic Transitions Internet

UkraineAlert

May 21, 2020

Russo-Ukrainian War: Zelenskyy unable to find path to peace with Putin

By Peter Dickinson

President Zelenskyy’s talk of a new approach to peace with Russia proved hugely attractive to the war-weary Ukrainian public in 2019. However, one year on, there is very little to show for this initial optimism.

Conflict Russia