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

Oct 15, 2026

Russia’s Starlink substitute poses a security threat far beyond Ukraine

By Joshua Stein

The Kremlin is currently in the process of deploying a satellite communications network known as Rassvet, creating concerns for the Russian invasion of Ukraine and for the wider international security environment, writes Joshua Stein.

China Conflict

UkraineAlert

Oct 15, 2026

Ukraine reports more battlefield gains as Putin’s invasion loses momentum

By David Kirichenko

Kyiv has reported further battlefield gains this week as the country’s Operation Vivaldi counteroffensive in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region continues to advance, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Oct 13, 2026

Putin snubs Trump’s ceasefire as Russia aims to make Ukraine unlivable

By Maksym Beznosiuk, William Dixon

Hours after US President Donald Trump’s surprise Sunday announcement of an energy ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow, Russia responded by bombing a series of Ukrainian power plants, write Maksym Beznosiuk and William Dixon.

Conflict Drones

UkraineAlert

Oct 8, 2026

Ukraine can help Europe counter Russia’s escalating shadow war

By Ryan Prior, Maria Kovach

From Leipzig Airport to the Black Sea, Russia’s campaign of gray zone aggression against Europe has been escalating at an alarming rate in recent months. Ukraine's experience can help European leaders find the right response, write Ryan Prior and Maria Kovach.

Cybersecurity Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Oct 8, 2026

Starving Ukrainians must travel ‘road of death’ to flee Russian occupation

By Oleksandr Tolokonnikov

A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Russian-occupied southern Ukraine as the Kremlin authorities refuse to allow the evacuation of starving Ukrainian civilians trapped in front line city Oleshky, writes Oleksandr Tolokonnikov.

Conflict Drones

UkraineAlert

Oct 8, 2026

Russia’s jet drones pose a security threat far beyond Ukraine

By Leonid Baratz

Russian jet drones are currently terrorizing Ukraine’s civilian population and disrupting daily life for millions of people. It is only a matter of time before other countries are also confronted by this threat, writes Leonid Baratz.

Conflict Defense Technologies

UkraineAlert

Oct 6, 2026

We are staying: European diplomats reject Russian calls to leave Ukraine

By Peter Dickinson

European embassies in Kyiv sent a message of defiance to Moscow this week following the Kremlin’s latest call for diplomats to leave Ukraine, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Drones

UkraineAlert

Oct 6, 2026

Jet drones are Putin’s secret weapon as he seeks to break Ukraine

By Mykola Bielieskov

Russia’s air war against Ukraine has recently entered a deadly new phase with round-the-clock jet drone attacks on civilian targets across Kyiv as Vladimir Putin seeks to make the Ukrainian capital unlivable and break the country’s resistance, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

Conflict Defense Technologies

UkraineAlert

Oct 1, 2026

Putin aims to break Ukraine by terrorizing the civilian population

By Peter Dickinson

With the Russian army unable to defeat Ukraine on the battlefield, Putin is turning to terror tactics and is using ballistic missiles and jet drones in a bid to bomb Ukraine's civilian population into submission, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Drones

UkraineAlert

Sep 30, 2026

Ukraine can play a key role enabling US energy exports to Europe

By Stephen Blank

As Russia expands the bombardment of Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, changes are taking place in the country's energy sector with implications for the United States and the future shape of European gas markets, writes Stephen Blank.

Conflict European Union

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

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

UkraineAlert

Feb 19, 2019

How Ukraine’s Leading Comedian Pulled Ahead in Polls

By Ruslan Minich

On February 7, hundreds of Facebook users in Ukraine posted videos with red nose filters. Everyone ended up looking like a clown, and that was precisely the point. Ukrainians are clowns because they’ve allowed the country’s political elites to rob them blind, keeping salaries and social benefits low. This was part of a flash mob […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 19, 2019

Ukraine Has Reached a Tipping Point

By Oksana Markarova

Elections may be on the horizon, but I firmly believe that reforms will continue through 2020 and beyond. Now that Ukraine has enshrined EU and NATO accession as the fundamental direction of the country, whoever comes to power, Ukraine’s pro-western economic development and orientation cannot be reversed.

Ukraine