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

Aug 14, 2025

Alaska Summit: Trump wants a real estate deal. Putin wants an empire.

By Peter Dickinson

US President Donald Trump appears to view peace negotiations with Vladimir Putin as a geopolitical real estate deal. But the Russian dictator is not fighting for land in Ukraine. He is fighting for Ukraine itself, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Aug 14, 2025

Trump should insist on the return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia

By Mercedes Sapuppo

When US President Donald Trump sits down with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, he must demand the return of the thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.

Conflict Human Rights

UkraineAlert

Aug 12, 2025

Sacrificing Ukraine will only increase the cost of stopping Putin’s Russia

By Pavlo Zhovnirenko

Pressuring Ukraine to accept a Kremlin-friendly settlement may succeed in pausing the current war, but it will not bring peace. On the contrary, it will set the stage for international instability on a far larger scale, writes Pavlo Zhovnirenko.

China Conflict

UkraineAlert

Aug 11, 2025

Alaska Summit: Trump must press Putin over future Ukrainian security

By John E. Herbst

Trump-Putin Alaska Summit: If Moscow insists on the acceptance of Russian control over Ukrainian land for a ceasefire, it must accept strong measures to bolster Ukrainian security as well, writes John E. Herbst.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Aug 7, 2025

Ukraine’s expanding robot army can help address manpower shortages

By David Kirichenko

Robotic systems are in many ways an ideal battlefield solution for Ukraine as the country seeks ways to leverage its proven tech prowess in order to defend itself in a grueling war of attrition against a far larger enemy, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

Aug 5, 2025

Digital democracy is the key to staging wartime elections in Ukraine

By Brian Mefford

With no end in sight to Russia’s invasion, Ukraine cannot afford to postpone all elections indefinitely. With this in mind, it is time to start the process of digitalizing Ukraine’s democracy, writes Brian Mefford.

Civil Society Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Aug 5, 2025

Ukraine’s anti-corruption reforms are more vital than ever during wartime

By Olena Halushka

The recent wave of nationwide protests in defense of the country’s anti-corruption reforms served as a timely reminder that Ukraine’s democratic instincts remain strong, even amid the horrors of Russia’s invasion and the escalating bombardment of Ukrainian cities, writes Olena Halushka.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2025

A Ukraine without Ukrainians: Putin is erasing Europe’s largest nation

By Peter Dickinson

Russia is systematically erasing all traces of Ukrainian national identity throughout occupied Ukraine as Vladimir Putin pursues an extreme form of eliminationist imperialism in the heart of twenty-first century Europe, writes Peter Dickinson.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2025

Ukraine’s democracy is the key to the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration

By Alyona Getmanchuk

While Ukraine currently faces a range of unique challenges, this cannot justify neglecting democratic principles. On the contrary, defending the democratic gains of recent decades is vital if further progress toward Euro-Atlantic integration is to be achieved, writes Alyona Getmanchuk.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jul 29, 2025

Trump offered Putin victory in Ukraine. Why did Putin refuse?

By Peter Dickinson

Trump thought he could get a peace deal in Ukraine by offering Putin generous terms that amounted to a Russian victory. But Putin rejected Trump’s offer because he cannot accept anything less that Ukraine’s complete capitulation, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

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

Nov 26, 2024

Putin’s Ukraine obsession began 20 years ago with the Orange Revolution

By Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin’s poisonous obsession with Ukraine first began to take root 20 years ago when millions of Ukrainians directly defied him during the Orange Revolution, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Nov 26, 2024

Russia’s evolving information war poses a growing threat to the West

By Kateryna Odarchenko, Elena Davlikanova

Western governments have yet to adequately address the threat posed by Russia's highly sophisticated and rapidly evolving information warfare, write Kateryna Odarchenko and Elena Davlikanova.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Nov 26, 2024

Abandoning Georgia to the Kremlin would be a big geopolitical blunder

By Zviad Adzinbaia

Georgia is far from a lost cause, but it will require bold Western leadership to prevent the country’s capture by the Kremlin, writes Zviad Adzinbaia.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Nov 21, 2024

Ukraine wary of Western disunity ahead of possible Russia peace talks

By Katherine Spencer

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's recent call to Vladimir Putin has sparked alarm in Kyiv and criticism from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Ukraine seeks maximum Western unity ahead of possible Russia peace talks, writes Katherine Spencer.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Nov 18, 2024

Imposing neutrality on Ukraine will not stop Putin or bring peace to Europe

By Mykola Bielieskov

Imposing neutrality on Ukraine will not bring about a durable peace in Europe. On the contrary, it would leave Ukraine at Putin’s mercy and set the stage for a new Russian invasion, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Nov 18, 2024

1000 days of war: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine passes grim milestone

By Kira Rudik

1000 days of war in Ukraine: Russia's 2022 invasion was expected to be short and victorious. Almost three years on, Vladimir Putin is still deeply embroiled in the largest European conflict since World War II, writes Kira Rudik.

Conflict Freedom and Prosperity

UkraineAlert

Nov 18, 2024

Biden’s green light highlights the diminishing power of Putin’s red lines

By Peter Dickinson

US President Joe Biden's decision to allow long-range Ukrainian strikes inside Russia will not win the war, but it does underline the diminishing power of Putin's red lines, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Nov 14, 2024

Forcing Ukraine to cede land will only increase Putin’s imperial appetite

By Peter Dickinson

If Ukraine is forced to cede land to Russia in exchange for peace, Vladimir Putin’s entire invasion will be legitimized and his imperial appetite will only grow, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Nov 14, 2024

Ukrainian civil society leaders call for extension of Nord Stream 2 sanctions

By Ukrainian civil society leaders

Representatives of Ukraine’s civil society have penned an appeal to the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee calling for the extension of United States sanctions on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

Economic Sanctions Energy & Environment

UkraineAlert

Nov 14, 2024

Freezing the front lines in Ukraine would condemn millions to Russian occupation

By Mercedes Sapuppo

Donald Trump's election win is fueling speculation of a possible peace deal to end the war in Ukraine, but any attempt to freeze the front lines would condemn millions of Ukrainians to the horrors of Russian occupation, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.

Conflict Disinformation