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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

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

UkraineAlert
Sep 30, 2025

Putin’s dream of demilitarizing Ukraine has turned into his worst nightmare

By
Peter Dickinson

Putin had hoped to demilitarize and decapitate the Ukrainian state, but his self-defeating invasion has inadvertently created the militarily powerful and fiercely independent Ukraine he feared most of all, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Technologies

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

UkraineAlert
Oct 2, 2025

Drone superpower Ukraine is teaching NATO how to defend against Russia

By
David Kirichenko

Ukraine’s unrivaled experience of drone warfare makes it a key partner for NATO and an indispensable ally in the defense of Europe as the continent faces up to the mounting threat posed by an expansionist Russia, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict
Defense Technologies

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

UkraineAlert
Oct 14, 2025

Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure are a European problem

By
Aura Sabadus

Russia’s strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure are no longer just a Ukrainian problem. Moscow’s bombing campaign will become a wider European issue unless more support is offered to Kyiv, writes Aura Sabadus.

Conflict
Drones

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Jan 20, 2026

Surrender or freeze: Putin’s winter blitz targets Ukrainian civilians

By
Yuliya Kazdobina

Millions of Ukrainians have spent much of January without electricity and heating amid extreme winter weather conditions as Russia ruthlessly bombs Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure in a bid to freeze the country into submission, writes Yuliya Kazdobina.

Conflict
Crisis Management


UkraineAlert

Jan 20, 2026

Ukraine’s best security guarantee is the ability to strike back inside Russia

By
Serhii Kuzan

With Kyiv’s Western allies unlikely to risk war with Russia, Ukraine’s most realistic security guarantee remains a strong military coupled with the ability to strike targets deep inside Russia, writes Serhii Kuzan.

Conflict
Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Jan 15, 2026

Ukraine’s enhanced fortifications are increasing the cost of Putin’s invasion

By
David Kirichenko

As Ukraine focuses on preventing further Russian advances, Kyiv is investing in a major upgrade of the country’s defenses. This has resulted in what The Economist recently described as a “massive fortification system” covering much of the Ukrainian battlefield, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict
Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jan 15, 2026

Veterans can shape the future of Ukrainian democracy

By
Vasyl Sehin

The participation of military veterans in Ukraine’s political life has the potential to dramatically strengthen Ukrainian democracy and safeguard the country’s historic transition from centuries of Russian autocracy, writes Vasyl Sehin.

Conflict
Democratic Transitions


UkraineAlert

Jan 13, 2026

Putin is weaponizing winter as Russia tries to freeze Ukraine into submission

By
Peter Dickinson

Russia is “going all in” to destroy Ukraine’s power system, Ukrainian Deputy Energy Minister Mykola Kolisnyk said on January 13 following the latest in a series of major bombardments targeting civilian energy infrastructure in cities across the country.

Conflict
Crisis Management


UkraineAlert

Jan 13, 2026

Putin cannot accept any peace deal that secures Ukrainian statehood

By
William Dixon, Maksym Beznosiuk

Putin has no obvious route to victory in 2026 but cannot accept a compromise peace as any settlement that safeguarded Ukrainian independence would be seen in Moscow as an historic Russian defeat, write William Dixon and Maksym Beznosiuk.

Conflict
Nationalism


UkraineAlert

Jan 11, 2026

Belarus hosts nuclear-capable Russian missiles despite talk of US thaw

By
Mercedes Sapuppo

Russia’s recent delivery of nuclear-capable Oreshnik missiles to Belarus is a very deliberate act of nuclear saber-rattling that underlines Belarus’s continued role in Putin’s war machine as Minsk seeks to improve ties with the US, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.

Belarus
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jan 8, 2026

Russia’s war on Ukrainian farmers threatens global food security

By
Oleksandr Tolokonnikov

By attacking Ukrainian farmers, Russia seeks to undermine Ukraine’s food security, just as it targets the country’s energy infrastructure to deprive the civilian population of access to electricity and heating, writes Oleksandr Tolokonnikov.

Conflict
Drones


UkraineAlert

Jan 8, 2026

Ukraine’s robot army will be crucial in 2026 but drones can’t replace infantry

By
David Kirichenko

Ukraine’s growing robot army of land drones will play a vital role in the country’s defense during 2026, but they are not wonder weapons and cannot serve as a miracle cure for Kyiv’s manpower shortages, writes David Kirichenko.

Artificial Intelligence
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jan 7, 2026

Ukraine security guarantees are futile without increased pressure on Putin

By
Peter Dickinson

Western leaders have hailed progress toward “robust” security guarantees for Ukraine this week, but until Putin faces increased pressure to make peace, Russia will remain committed to continuing the war, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
France

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spotlight

Resilience in the face of adversity

Ukraine’s transformation

Ukraine has moved tentatively toward an open society and market economy since independence. The country has held several democratic elections and made halting progress in addressing corruption and state control in its economy. Since the 2014 Maidan Revolution, Ukraine has undertaken significant governance and economic reform and moved decisively toward a Europe-Atlantic foreign policy. Since 2022, Ukraine has resiliently continued to advance some reforms despite fighting for its very existence against the full-scale Russian invasion.

Learn more about Ukraine

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

UkraineAlert
Dec 5, 2024

Ukraine’s entrepreneurial class can drive the country’s economic recovery

The Ukrainian SME sector has demonstrated remarkable wartime resilience and is poised to be at the forefront of efforts to create a modern, innovative, postwar economy, writes Anton Waschuk.

Read More

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

UkraineAlert
Oct 1, 2024

Ukraine needs international investors to maintain defense tech momentum

By
Mykhailo Fedorov

Ukraine’s rapidly expanding defense tech sector can play a game-changing role in the war against Russia but Ukrainian companies need international investment, writes Ukraine’s Minister for Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.

Artificial Intelligence
Conflict

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

UkraineAlert
Jun 13, 2024

Ukraine officially embraces English as historic westward pivot continues

By
Oleksiy Goncharenko

By officially embracing English, Ukrainians aim to support their country’s historic pivot away from Moscow and return to the European community of nations, writes Oleksiy Goncharenko.

Civil Society
Conflict

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.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Nov 20, 2018

Ukraine Is Really a Testing Ground

By David J. Kramer

Western democracies are under threat from outside meddling, and Ukraine is the testing ground for this interference. Former Assistant Secretary of State David J. Kramer looks at why Ukraine’s position on the frontline of freedom has led to increase foreign interference in Ukraine and why the West must pay attention to possible influence operations in […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 20, 2018

Moscow’s games backfire again and again

By Olexander Samarskyi

Russia is desperately trying to prevent the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from finally freeing itself from Moscow, and its tactics aren’t working.

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 19, 2018

How the Kremlin Can Win Ukraine’s Elections

By Markian Kuzmowycz

As Ukraine’s 2019 elections approach, Moscow’s interests have come into greater focus. Despite the pro-European momentum delivered by the 2014 Euromaidan Revolution, parties more closely aligned with Moscow’s interests may see a more realistic path to power than is widely assumed.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2018

How We are Exposing Foreign Interference in Ukraine’s Elections

By John E. Herbst

Western democracies are under threat from outside meddling, and Ukraine is the testing ground for this interference. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s persistent efforts to influence the domestic politics of his neighbors and countries well beyond Russia’s borders have posed enormous challenges in Europe and across the Atlantic.

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 13, 2018

Why Are Ukraine’s Honest Judges Being Blocked from the Supreme Court and Anticorruption Court?

By Oleg Sukhov

After the 2013-2014 Euromaidan Revolution, hopes were high for the introduction of the rule of law in Ukraine. But five years later the demand for justice is still unfulfilled. Judges implicated in corruption and political cases have tended to be promoted, and those few known for their integrity and independence have been demoted and fired. […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 13, 2018

What a Little Girl and an Aging Pop Star Can Teach Us about Russian Propaganda

By Iuliia Mendel

Eight-year-old Nina never wanted to be a star on Russian state television. Nevertheless, the Kyiv native was the subject of a one-hour discussion on Russia’s First Channel, a popular national show. The topic was hot: a Ukrainian family wanted their daughter to be taught music in Ukrainian.

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 12, 2018

A Counterintuitive Way Ukraine Can Impress the EU and Solve Its Own Migration Problem

By Andrej Novak and Andreas Umland

Ukrainians were granted the most residence permits of any non-EU nationals in the EU last year. Approximately 662,000 Ukrainians received such permission in 2017 alone. Ukrainians are now integrating into Europe at an annual number roughly equal to the population of Montenegro, an official EU accession candidate and new NATO member. For hundreds of thousands […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 8, 2018

Three Things Ukraine Must Do Now If It Wants Clean Elections Next Year

By Brian Mefford

The parliament renewed Ukraine’s highest election body, the Central Election Commission, ahead of the crucial 2019 general elections.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 8, 2018

Russia’s Dangerous New Front in Ukraine

By Vera Zimmerman

In response to Russia’s aggressive actions in the Sea of Azov, Ukraine has gone on high alert to boost its coastal defense positions and build up its naval presence. Since April 2018, under the pretext of protecting its illegally constructed Kerch Bridge and fighting what it calls Ukraine’s “state piracy,” Russia has been brazenly conducting […]

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2018

Q&A: Is This What It Looks Like to Be an Activist in Ukraine Today?

By Melinda Haring

On November 4, 33-year-old anticorruption activist Kateryna Handzyuk died from injuries caused by an acid attack. Handzyuk had been attacked three months earlier outside of her home in Kherson, Ukraine, and had undergone eleven surgeries to recover from the burns. Since 2017, at least 55 activists, journalists, and one opposition politician have been attacked. UkraineAlert […]

Ukraine
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