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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

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

UkraineAlert
May 13, 2025

Drone superpower: Ukrainian wartime innovation offers lessons for NATO

By
David Kirichenko

Today’s Ukraine is now a drone superpower with an innovative domestic defense industry that can provide its NATO allies with important lessons in the realities of twenty-first century warfare, writes David Kirichenko.

Conflict
Defense Industry

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

UkraineAlert
May 6, 2025

The shadow of 1930s appeasement hangs over US-led peace talks

By
Oleksandr Merezhko

As the world prepares to mark the eightieth anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany, the shadow of events leading up to World War II hangs over efforts to end Russia’s current invasion of Ukraine, writes Oleksandr Merezhko.

Conflict
European Union

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

UkraineAlert
Apr 17, 2025

The Ukrainian army is now Europe’s most credible security guarantee

By
Pavlo Verkhniatskyi

As Europe confronts the new geopolitical realities of an expansionist Russia and an isolationist United States, the continent’s most credible security guarantee is now the Ukrainian Armed Forces, writes Pavlo Verkhniatskyi.

Conflict
Defense Industry

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Jun 26, 2025

Putin cannot attend BRICS summit in Brazil as he fears arrest for war crimes

By
Peter Dickinson

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend next week’s annual BRICS summit in Brazil as he fears possible arrest for war crimes committed during the invasion of Ukraine, writes Peter Dickinson.

Brazil
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 26, 2025

Russia’s persecution of the Crimean Tatars must not be forgotten

By
Mercedes Sapuppo

Events will take place across Ukraine this week to mark Crimean Tatar Flag Day. However, there will be no celebrations in Crimea itself, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.

Conflict
Human Rights


UkraineAlert

Jun 24, 2025

US secures release of Belarusian prisoners but pressure must continue

By
Hanna Liubakova

The release of fourteen prominent Belarusian political prisoners last weekend is welcome news. But the 1172 who remain behind bars in Belarus deserve more than symbolic gestures from the West, writes Hanna Liubakova.

Belarus
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 24, 2025

North Korea is playing a key role in Russia’s war against Ukraine

By
Olivia Yanchik

North Korea is playing an increasingly vital support role in Russia’s war against Ukraine. This includes providing the Kremlin with vast quantities of ammunition, ballistic missiles, and thousands of men, writes Olivia Yanchik.

Defense Industry
Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2025

‘All of Ukraine is ours’: Putin’s Russian imperialism is now on full display

By
Peter Dickinson

Putin declared last week that “all of Ukraine is ours.” The Kremlin dictator’s revealing comments highlight the resurgent Russian imperialism driving Europe’s largest invasion since WWII, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jun 19, 2025

New EU and US energy sanctions are needed to disarm Putin’s war machine

By
Aura Sabadus

The EU and US have prepared measures that could dramatically weaken Russia’s energy weapon and undermine Putin’s war machine. The question now is whether they have the political leadership to proceed, writes Aura Sabadus.

Conflict
Economic Sanctions


UkraineAlert

Jun 19, 2025

Addressing Georgia’s slide away from European integration

By
Matteo Mecacci

Officials in Brussels and Tbilisi must act to rebuild trust and address the deteriorating relationship between Georgia and the European Union, writes Matteo Mecacci.

Conflict
Democratic Transitions


UkraineAlert

Jun 17, 2025

Putin’s Kyiv blitz sends message to G7 leaders: Russia does not want peace

By
Peter Dickinson

As G7 leaders gathered on Monday for a summit in Canada, Russia unleashed one of the largest bombardments of the Ukrainian capital since the start of Moscow’s invasion more than three years ago, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
European Union


UkraineAlert

Jun 17, 2025

Russia and Ukraine are locked in an economic war of attrition

By
Anders Åslund

As the Russian army continues to wage a brutal war of attrition in Ukraine, the two nations are also locked in an economic contest that could play a key role in determining the outcome of Europe’s largest invasion since World War II, writes Anders Åslund.

Conflict
Corruption


UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2025

Ukraine is shaping the future of drone warfare at sea as well as on land

By
Peter Dickinson

Kyiv’s string of remarkable naval victories in the Battle of the Black Sea confirm that Ukrainian innovation is shaping the future of drone warfare at sea as well as on land, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Industry

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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

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

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

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

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

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

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

Aug 30, 2017

Things Are Looking Up in Ukraine

By Katie LaRoque

For the first time since Ukraine’s 2014 Revolution of Dignity, the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) polls show a slight improvement in the country. It’s finally possible to be cautiously optimistic about Ukraine. Here are the four key takeaways from IRI’s latest national public opinion survey.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 30, 2017

How Ukraine Can Win the Revolution Again

By Kateryna Smagliy

Ukraine now boasts a new layer of democratic paint, but the old oligarchic colors are peeking through. Three years after Petro Poroshenko assumed the presidency, numerous experts warn that a counter-revolution is on the horizon and that Ukraine may slide back to authoritarianism. Ukraine is at serious risk of failing again. Civic activists failed to […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 29, 2017

How Trump Can Get Putin’s Attention

By Stephen Blank

Two days after Russia told US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson it was willing to talk about Ukraine, Moscow unilaterally and illegally closed the Kerch Strait, ostensibly for technical reasons. So much for a willingness to talk. Russia is not only threatening Ukraine again, it also is displaying contempt for President Donald Trump personally. Moscow’s […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 15, 2017

The Challenge Ahead in Eastern Ukraine

By Askold Krushelnycky

Bloody fighting between government troops and pro-Kremlin separatists and Russian regulars has continued for three years in Ukraine’s east. Meanwhile, an equally fierce battle is being waged for the hearts and minds of civilians on the Ukrainian side, many of whose loyalties hover between Kyiv and Moscow.

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 15, 2017

How to Fix Ukraine’s Economy

By Mark Gitenstein and Jacques Tohme

It’s been more than three years since Ukrainians were driven in large measure by the rampant corruption in Ukraine to retake their country. Yet state-owned enterprises (SOEs)—the organs of systemic corruption and deterrence for western investment—remain in the hands of the same elites who drain these state treasures of their financial and material resources. Even […]

Central Europe Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 11, 2017

Eastern Europe’s Illiberal Trends Bode Badly for Ukraine

By Oksana Bedratenko

A recent increase in illiberal trends in a number of Eastern European countries threatens to erode support for Ukraine in the region. Just as important, it may lead to disillusionment inside Ukraine, where reformers have drawn on the region’s democracy building experience as guidance for Ukraine’s own reforms. Immediately after the breakup of the Soviet […]

Central Europe Hungary

UkraineAlert

Aug 10, 2017

Correction Unnecessary

By John E. Herbst

Bloomberg View columnist Leonid Bershidsky is unhappy and he has been tweeting.  Specifically, he demands a correction to my August 8 post that criticized some of the points in his opinion piece arguing against sending defensive lethal weapons to Ukraine. He claims that he “did not argue” what I said; he has “no idea how” […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 9, 2017

Stanford program turns theory into practice in Ukraine and beyond

By Melinda Haring

Both Liakh and Sotnyk return to Kyiv with new ideas and a powerful network of experts and activists they can consult in the long struggle to transform Ukraine.

Civil Society Education

UkraineAlert

Aug 8, 2017

Why the Case Against Arming Ukraine Doesn’t Hold Water

By John E. Herbst

Armchair strategists have come out of the woodwork to explain why it would be a mistake for the United States to arm Ukraine. They argue that Russia is stronger than Ukraine and can outmatch any escalation, Moscow has a greater interest in Ukraine than Washington, and Ukraine’s government is corrupt and undeserving of such support. […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 8, 2017

Putin Still in Denial over the Loss of Ukraine

By Peter Dickinson

When Kremlin proxies in eastern Ukraine declared the foundation of “Malorossia” in mid-July, most people laughed. This bizarre attempt to replace Ukraine with a “Little Russian” vassal state was seen as one more indication of how hopelessly out of touch Russian policymakers are with Ukrainian public opinion. However, at least one man in Moscow failed […]

Russia Ukraine
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