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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

Sep 22, 2025

Moldova accuses Russia of election interference ahead of key vote

By
Aidan Stretch

Moldova is raising the alarm over Russian interference ahead of this weekend’s parliamentary election amid fears that a pro-Kremlin victory could derail Moldova’s EU ambitions and create a new front in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, writes Aidan Stretch.

Conflict
Corruption


UkraineAlert

Sep 18, 2025

Putin’s Polish probe demands decisive response to restore NATO deterrence

By
Zahar Hryniv

Putin’s recent drone escalation in the skies over Poland is an unmistakable signal that NATO’s credibility is under threat. Western leaders must now respond decisively to deter further Russian aggression, writes Zahar Hryniv.

Conflict
Drones


UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2025

Europe needs a new approach to Belarus focused on practical outcomes

By
Valery Kavaleuski

Belarus is a strategically crucial European nation that no European leader can afford to ignore. Evidently, the policies adopted in 2020 have not prevented the country’s slide into deepening dictatorship. It is therefore time to consider new approaches and initiatives, writes Valery Kavaleuski.

Belarus
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Sep 16, 2025

Ukraine’s skies are Europe’s first line of defense against Russian drones

By
Alina Zubkovych

As NATO leaders respond to Russia’s recent drone incursion into Poland, they should recognize that Ukraine’s skies are now European first line of defense against Putin’s growing drone fleet, writes Alina Zubkovych.

Conflict
Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Sep 16, 2025

Only Ukraine can teach NATO how to combat Putin’s growing drone fleet

By
David Kirichenko

NATO must urgently learn from Ukraine’s unique experience of Russian drone warfare as the alliance seeks to address the growing threats posed by Putin’s drone swarms, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict
Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Sep 11, 2025

China, India, and North Korea back Russia as changing global order takes shape

By
Katherine Spencer

Support from China, India, and North Korea for Russia’s war in Ukraine will allow the killing to continue while undermining Trump’s efforts to pressure the Kremlin into ending the invasion, writes Katherine Spencer.

China
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Sep 11, 2025

Fighting corruption strengthens Ukraine in the war against Russia

By
Matthew H. Murray

Ukraine’s efforts to combat corruption on the domestic front play a vital role in the country’s broader fight for national survival against Vladimir Putin’s resurgent Russian imperialism, writes Matthew H. Murray.

Civil Society
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Sep 11, 2025

Belarus hosts Russian war games as Putin’s drones probe Poland

By
Hanna Liubakova

On September 12, Belarus and Russia will begin their largest joint military exercises since the start of Putin’s Ukraine invasion, just two days after at least nineteen Russian drones penetrated neighboring Polish airspace, writes Hanna Liubakova.

Belarus
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Sep 9, 2025

What is the Coalition of the Willing actually willing to do in Ukraine?

By
Mykola Bielieskov

European troops in Ukraine could serve as a meaningful element within a broader deterrence package, but Coalition of the Willing leaders should focus on making the Ukrainian military strong enough to deter the Kremlin, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

Conflict
European Union


UkraineAlert

Sep 4, 2025

Ukrainian bombing campaign turns Russia’s sheer size into a weakness

By
David Kirichenko 

For centuries, Russia’s sheer size has been its greatest asset. Ukraine now intends to transform this vastness into a weakness with a long-range bombing campaign targeting Putin’s economically vital but vulnerable energy industry, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict
Drones

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.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Nov 2, 2018

Making Sense of Russia’s New Draconian Sanctions on Ukraine

By Anders Åslund

On November 1, the Russian government imposed severe economic sanctions on 322 Ukrainian individuals and 68 Ukrainian companies. These are the most extensive sanctions imposed by any country in the tit-for-tat confrontation between Russia and Western countries over Ukraine. Curiously, these sanctions are explicitly only economic, declaring that any assets on the territory of the […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 1, 2018

Russia Understands Ukraine’s Geopolitical Importance but Does the West?

By Peter Dickinson

As Ukraine prepares to mark five years since the start of the country’s Euromaidan protests, the repercussions continue to reverberate across the globe. What began as an ordinary protest movement soon morphed into a revolution that sparked a Russian invasion and ushered in a new Cold War. Without the Euromaidan, Russia and the West would […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 1, 2018

Ukrainian Populists Still Think They Can Be Pro-EU but Anti-IMF. They’re Wrong.

By Taras Kuzio

Ukrainian voters have long believed that in her drive for power, long-time politician Yulia Tymoshenko will do and say anything. This is not unusual for populists who routinely make promises that cannot be met and are flexible with the truth. That characteristic has been on display since Tymoshenko announced her intention to run for the […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 31, 2018

Georgia, Where Everything Old Is Maybe New Again?

By Luis Navarro

On October 28, Georgians went to the polls to elect their fifth president, possibly for the last time. Neither candidate, both former foreign ministers, won outright. An unprecedented run-off is slated for December 2.    The United National Movement (UNM) presidential candidate Grigol Vashadze achieved an unexpectedly strong showing (37.7 percent) against the ruling Georgian […]

Russia The Caucasus

UkraineAlert

Oct 30, 2018

10 Names Russia Hopes You’ll Never Know

By Vitalii Rybak

Since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, Moscow and its proxies have put dozens of Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar political prisoners behind bars. However, there are many other people in Russian prisons who have been incarcerated for their unwillingness to bow down to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime. The fabrication of these cases has been refined […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 30, 2018

Five ways to entice Ukrainians to come home

By Andy Hunder

Approximately five million Ukrainians, roughly 25 percent of the country’s economically active population, work abroad.

Macroeconomics Migration

UkraineAlert

Oct 29, 2018

How Ukraine’s Presidential Race Is Shaping Up

By Mykola Vorobiov

Ukraine’s presidential race is in full swing, even though the official campaign period has not yet begun. At this point, incumbent President Petro Poroshenko and former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko may make the second round; no candidate is expected to take 50 percent in the first round. If elections were held now, Tymoshenko would take […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 24, 2018

Three More Reasons to Be Bullish on Ukraine

By Melinda Haring

Ukraine’s civil society is realizing an unfortunate fact: reforming the country is going to be more of a marathon than a sprint. Consequently, pro-reform advocates have had to adjust their expectations. Describing her hopes for the speed of change in Ukraine, Anticorruption Action Center executive director Daria Kaleniuk said that she and her colleagues now […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 24, 2018

Ukraine Can Succeed But It Won’t Happen Overnight

By Andrii Osadchuk

With every new election cycle, Ukrainians freeze in hope and despondency. Each time, we face an inner conflict between the desire for fair and systemic change and the fear and distrust acquired from experience. We’ve been trying to break out of this vicious cycle for twenty-seven years, and each time we try, the enthusiasm subsides […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 23, 2018

How Ukraine’s Cities Are Sharing Their Good Ideas

By Iryna Ozymok

Today, 54 percent of the world’s population lives in cities, and by 2030, two-thirds likely will. Mayors are city managers, responsible not only for quality of life issues like access to water, roads, and infrastructure; they’re also facing global challenges like climate change, security, and migration.

Ukraine