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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

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

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

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

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

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

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

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Sep 19, 2024

Ukraine’s innovative defense industry can play a key role in Western security

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Pavlo Verkhniatskyi </span>

Ukraine's innovative defense industry has emerged as the country's secret weapon in the war with Russia and can a play a key role in strengthening the West, writes Pavlo Verkhniatskyi.


Conflict

Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2024

Putin is becoming entangled in his own discredited red lines

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Peter Dickinson</span>

Putin is attempting to impose a new red line over the use of Western long-range missiles inside Russia, but Ukraine has already been using these weapons in occupied regions claimed by Russia for more than a year, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict

Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2024

Countering Russia’s campaign to erase Ukrainian cultural identity

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Mercedes Sapuppo</span>

International initiatives by Google and others are helping to preserve Ukraine's national heritage amid a Russian campaign to erase Ukrainian cultural identity and destroy heritage sites across the country, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2024

Time to make Russia worry about the West’s red lines in Ukraine

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Mykola Bielieskov</span>

Even talking about Western red lines in Ukraine will no doubt be seen as too provocative by some, but it is now obvious that allowing Russia uncontested escalation dominance has been a costly blunder, writes Mykola Bielieskov.


Conflict

Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2024

Concerns grow over possible Russian sabotage of undersea cables

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Aleksander Cwalina</span>

The United States has recently detected indications of increased Russian military activity around key undersea cables, fueling concerns over a possible escalation in the Kremlin's hybrid war against the west, writes Aleksander Cwalina.


Conflict

Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2024

Why Ukraine will remain central to the future of European security

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Silvester Nosenko</span>

Although it is currently common to talk about the West as a unitary actor in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian War, the stakes actually differ significantly on the two opposite sides of the Atlantic, writes Silvester Nosenko.


Conflict

European Union


UkraineAlert

Sep 10, 2024

Ukraine’s biggest wartime government shakeup prompts muted reaction in Kyiv

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Andrew D’Anieri</span>

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presided over his government’s largest wartime reshuffle in early September, with nine ministries getting new permanent leadership, writes Andrew D’Anieri.


Conflict

Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Sep 10, 2024

Escalation management is the appeasement of the 21st century

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Peter Dickinson</span>

The West's emphasis on avoiding escalation following Russia's invasion of Ukraine is the modern equivalent of the appeasement policies that emboldened Hitler and set the stage for WWII, writes Peter Dickinson.


Defense Policy

Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Sep 5, 2024

Too many still view Ukraine through the prism of Russian imperialism

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Olesya Khromeychuk</span>

Far too many Western newspaper editors, academics, and cultural commentators continue to view Ukraine through the distorting lens of Russian imperialism, writes Olesya Khromeychuk.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Sep 4, 2024

Indian PM Modi visits Ukraine to open new foreign policy horizons

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Mridula Ghosh</span>

Indian PM Narendra Modi paid an historic visit to Kyiv in late August as Delhi seeks to counter negative perceptions of its close economic and defense ties with Moscow and underline its status as an emerging geopolitical power in its own right, writes Mridula Ghosh.


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

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

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

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

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

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

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

Jan 2, 2018

Nine Things Ukraine Should Do in 2018

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Olena Prokopenko and Christina Parandii</span>

In September 2017, Parliamentary Speaker Andriy Parubiy branded the new political season “the autumn of reforms.” His prediction was partly right and partly wrong. Parliament did deliver on some overdue issues; however, the recent attacks on anticorruption institutions overshadowed a number of positive achievements. As Ukraine enters 2018, a year which precedes the presidential and […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jan 2, 2018

Which Will Be Europe’s Poorest Country? Ukraine or Moldova

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Anders Åslund</span>

A year ago, I expressed my hope that “2017 should be the year when Ukraine’s economy takes off.” It should have been, but it was not. In the last quarter of 2016, Ukraine’s GDP grew by 4.8 percent. Alas, in each of the ensuing four quarters, the growth rate declined and GDP grew by only […]

Moldova Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 21, 2017

It’s the Holiday Season Again. Will Ukraine Be Ready for the Next Cyberattack?

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Vera Zimmerman</span>

Experts anticipate a new cyberattack on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure this month; they have observed increased activity from the same hackers involved in a previous cyberattack. In the last two years, cyberattacks on Ukraine’s power grid coincided with the winter holidays, a sensitive time with a high demand for critical infrastructure. A cyberattack may target civilians […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 21, 2017

People Are Wrong about the War in the Donbas, Says US Envoy

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Melinda Haring</span>

2017 has been the most violent year of the conflict in eastern Ukraine since it began, according to Kurt Volker, US Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations. “A lot of people think that this has somehow turned into a sleepy, frozen conflict and it’s stable and now we have…a ceasefire,” Volker said on December 19 during […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 21, 2017

Why Yegor Soboliev is Still Optimistic and Even Joyful about Ukraine’s Future

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Diane Francis</span>

The claw back of reforms in Ukraine is alarming, and the latest blow was the dismissal on December 7 of hardworking Yegor Soboliev as chairman of parliament’s anti-corruption committee. A former investigative journalist and Maidan activist turned politician, he has been at the forefront of reforms such as electronic asset declarations for state officials, the […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 20, 2017

Backsliding on Democracy Imperils Security in Ukraine and Poland

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Stephen Blank</span>

Poland and Ukraine are frontline states for European security. That fact alone makes their mutual backsliding away from democratic reform—the indispensable precondition for their revival and security—so dangerous. The Polish government seems to want to return to its interwar model; at that time, it repressed its minorities and ultimately failed, ending up bereft of friends […]

Poland Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 19, 2017

Ukraine’s Oligarchs Still Control the Media. Will Anyone Ever Challenge Them?

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Vitalii Rybak</span>

The oligarchs still control the airwaves in Ukraine. Ten of eleven national television channels are directly or indirectly connected to politicians and oligarchs. More than 75 percent of Ukrainians regularly watch TV channels owned by Ukrainian oligarchs Viktor Pinchuk, Ihor Kolomoisky, Dmytro Firtash, and Rinat Akhmetov. In radio, the situation is even worse: the top […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 18, 2017

What Ukraine Urgently Needs Isn’t What You Think

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Adrian Karatnycky</span>

In a recent article the talented journalist Vitaliy Sych, editor of Ukraine’s reformist weekly Novoe Vremya, posits the emergence of a war between old Ukraine and new Ukraine. He is right. Recent months have seen the escalation of a fight that pits anticorruption institutions and activists against segments of the state and ruling elite. But […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 18, 2017

Maybe We Were Wrong about Gas Reform

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Melinda Haring</span>

It’s no secret that the Atlantic Council has been bullish on Ukraine’s reforms. In particular, we often cite gas reform as the one that massively curbed corruption in Ukraine since the Euromaidan. But after an hour-long conversation with Naftogaz CEO Andriy Kobolyev on December 8, I came away with a different picture. Since the thirty-nine-year-old […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Dec 14, 2017

One Way Kyiv Can Recover from Its Very Bad Week

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Melinda Haring</span>

Ukraine got a serious black eye last week when its parliament dismissed the outspoken chairman of its Anticorruption Committee and nearly fired the head of its independent anticorruption bureau. But there’s a clear way it can recover. After anticorruption reform, fixing Ukraine’s dismal health care system is a second priority for the Ukrainian public. Pushing […]

Ukraine
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