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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

Jun 10, 2021

Ukraine must do more to regain the West’s trust

By
Kira Rudik

The coming week will underline the shortcomings of President Zelenskyy’s foreign policy, with Ukraine left on the sidelines as a series of crucial international summits take place that will directly impact the country’s future.


Corruption


Democratic Transitions


UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2021

Ukraine poised for historic land market breakthrough

By
AJ Skiera

On July 1, 2021, Ukraine's new farmland market legislation will come into force, leading to real land ownership for around six million Ukrainians.


Corruption


Economy & Business


UkraineAlert

Jun 10, 2021

Can Shevchenko bring Euro 2020 glory to Ukraine?

By
Andrew Todos

The scandal over Ukraine’s Euro 2020 national football team shirt has energized the Ukrainian public at a time when the increasingly self-confident country is enjoying a prolonged period of nation-building progress.


Ukraine


BelarusAlert

Jun 9, 2021

Axis of autocrats: Belarus dictator Lukashenka backs Putin’s Ukraine war

By
Brian Whitmore

The axis of autocrats in Eastern Europe continues to solidify as Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka bends over backwards to please Moscow by showing his support for Russia's war against Ukraine.


Belarus


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 8, 2021

Ukrainians fear betrayal over Putin’s pipeline

By
Diane Francis

The prospect of NATO and US-Russia summits in mid-June is creating anxiety in Ukraine, which finds itself in the role of bystander despite the nation’s prominent position on the agendas for both meetings.


European Union


Geopolitics & Energy Security


UkraineAlert

Jun 8, 2021

Ukraine’s post-2014 public procurement progress is under threat

By
Max Nefyodov

An amendment adopted by the Ukrainian parliament on June 3 sets an awful precedent that could pave the way for further exemptions of major construction projects from Ukraine’s public procurement laws and regulations.


Corruption


Economy & Business


UkraineAlert

Jun 7, 2021

Ukraine’s new football shirt leaves Russia furious

By
Peter Dickinson

Russia has reacted with fury to Ukraine's new national football team jersey featuring a map of Ukraine. Kremlin anger is focused on the inclusion of Crimea, which is internationally recognized as part of Ukraine but has been under Russian occupation since 2014.


Conflict


Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jun 3, 2021

Ukraine’s energy future is tied to European integration

By
Olga Bielkova

Energy transformation is possible in Ukraine. In order to make this vision a reality, Ukrainians must first define it and commit to consistent implementation, election cycles notwithstanding.


Energy Markets & Governance


Energy Transitions


UkraineAlert

Jun 3, 2021

US vaccine diplomacy: Ukraine should be a priority

By
Geoffrey Berlin

With US President Joe Biden preparing to send 80 million Covid vaccine doses abroad, Ukraine is a strong candidate to become a priority beneficiary in this first wave of America’s “vaccine diplomacy.”


Coronavirus


Ukraine


UkraineAlert

Jun 1, 2021

Why Eurovision is Ukraine’s soft power secret weapon

By
Peter Dickinson

Since the dawn of Ukrainian independence in 1991, no single event has done as much to promote Brand Ukraine internationally or showcase the country’s creativity as the annual Eurovision Song Contest.


Resilience & Society


Ukraine

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Content

UkraineAlert

Jun 13, 2018

Will Ukraine Be the Ultimate Loser of Putin’s World Cup?

By Peter Dickinson

Back in 2010 when world football governing body FIFA awarded Russia the right to host this year’s World Cup finals, few viewed Moscow as a threat. At the time, President Dmitry Medvedev seemed eager to portray himself as a Western-friendly reformer. In the diplomatic arena, the reset with the Obama White House had yet to […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 13, 2018

Why Ukrainians Are Betting On a Rock Star or Comedian to Turn Things Around

By Vera Zimmerman

No one knows how the Ukrainian presidential election next March will play out, but it’s fair to say that election season has already begun. Polls paint a worrying picture for candidates.  Despite perfect name recognition, the frontrunner Yulia Tymoshenko has only 9 to 13 percent support, according to recent polls (Rating, SOCIS, and Democratic Initiatives). […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 13, 2018

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: The Saga of Hanna Solomatina

By Josh Cohen

Hanna Solomatina never set out to be a whistleblower. The former head of Ukraine’s National Agency for Corruption Prevention’s (NACP) Financial Control and Lifestyle Monitoring Department just wanted to use her background in finance and auditing to help the country fight endemic graft. The NACP manages Ukraine’s e-declaration system, which mandates that officials reveal their […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2018

The Epic Struggle of Crimean Tatars Captured in the Film Mustafa

By Viola Gienger

Crimean Tatars’ unending struggle for freedom has been nothing less than epic, and much of it is represented in the long life of Mustafa Dzhemilev. Finally, a film producer has recognized his story for what it is: a compelling tale of historic sweep featuring a legendary protagonist of distinguished bearing.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2018

Ukraine’s Next Reform Challenge May Be the Toughest One Yet

By Olena Halushka and Anastasia Krasnosilska

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) recently made headlines after masterminding a dramatic plot to spare the life of Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko. On May 29, newspapers announced that Babchenko had been assassinated in Kyiv, Ukraine, where he had been living as a dissident Russian journalist. The next day at what many thought was an ordinary SBU […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2018

Ukraine Takes One Step Forward and Two Steps Back

By Melinda Haring

It’s only been six weeks since I was last in Kyiv, and yet the mood now feels completely different. When I was last in Kyiv, posters advertising rock star Slava Vakarchuk’s Independence Day concert were everywhere and he was the talk of the town. No longer. Now former prime minister and campaigner extraordinaire Yulia Tymoshenko’s […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 11, 2018

How to Keep the Kremlin and the Oligarchs Out of the Ukrainian White House

By Anders Åslund

The other night in Kyiv, one of Ukraine’s best political analysts came to see me. He asked me what the United States wants in the next Ukrainian presidential election slated for March 2019. I told him that the United States doesn’t have a favorite. Nor will it. My interlocutor was highly dissatisfied with the answer. […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 7, 2018

Ukraine’s Veterans Are a Powerful Constituency. Who Will Control Them?

By Lauren Van Metre

On February 27, Ukraine’s parliament voted to establish a new Ministry for Veterans, pending the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers. The parliament has been active on veterans’ issues, adopting more than thirty laws in the last three years to provide social services and protections. But more than twenty ministries and government departments handle veterans’ […]

NATO Security & Defense

UkraineAlert

Jun 6, 2018

Ukraine’s Devastating Problem Is Only Getting Worse

By Diane Francis

Political disaffection is not unique to Ukraine, but the lack of optimism and new access to European jobs foretells more migration.

Macroeconomics Migration

UkraineAlert

Jun 4, 2018

Actually, the West’s Anticorruption Policy Is Spot On

By Daria Kaleniuk

In a recent Foreign Affairs column, Adrian Karatnycky and Alexander J. Motyl argue that the West’s anticorruption policies are failing in Ukraine. This is false. The West’s anticorruption policies are spot on, and the West needs to dig in and push even harder. Karatnycky and Motyl are right that Ukraine has changed for the better […]

Ukraine