UkraineAlert

UkraineAlert

UkraineAlert is a comprehensive online publication that provides regular news and analysis on developments in Ukraine’s politics, economy, civil society, and culture. UkraineAlert sources analysis and commentary from a wide-array of thought-leaders, politicians, experts, and activists from Ukraine and the global community. UkraineAlert has become a major publication in Ukraine’s news landscape and has established itself not only through its quality of content but also significant partnerships with English, Ukrainian, and Russian-language media through the country.

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

Ukraine’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

UkraineAlert
Sep 3, 2026

Putin cannot defeat NATO but he could divide and discredit the alliance

By
Peter Dickinson

If Russian President Vladimir Putin decides to attack NATO, his goal will be to divide and discredit the alliance rather than actually defeating it, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Policy

Ukraine’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

UkraineAlert
Aug 27, 2026

Ukrainians are not superheroes with endless powers of resilience

By
Lauren Van Metre, Elena Davlikanova

By celebrating Ukrainian resilience as an almost superhuman quality, the international community risks obscuring the much less glamorous reality that Ukrainians are actually ordinary people who have endured extraordinary violence for far too long, write Lauren Van Metre and Elena Davlikanova.

Civil Society
Conflict

Ukraine’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

UkraineAlert
Aug 25, 2026

A cultural renaissance is reshaping national identity in wartime Ukraine

By
Davis Richardson

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is fueling a defiant cultural outpouring that is redefining and strengthening Ukrainian national identity in ways that challenge centuries of Kremlin imperialism, writes Davis Richardson.

Civil Society
Conflict

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Jul 15, 2020

Toppling Lenin: The lessons of Ukraine’s memory wars

By
Peter Dickinson

The Black Lives Matter movement has sparked a flurry of monument removals across the US and elsewhere. Independent Ukraine's long history of memory wars offers a timely case study in the politics of the past.


Democratic Transitions

Nationalism


UkraineAlert

Jul 14, 2020

Russo-Ukrainian War: Kremlin denials prevent progress towards peace

By
Oleksandr Merezhko

Almost six years have passed since the Minsk Agreements were first signed. However, there is still fundamental disagreement over the parties to these agreements and the obligations they are under.


Conflict

Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding


UkraineAlert

Jul 13, 2020

East Ukraine’s European roots and the myths of Putin’s Russian World

By
Alvydas Medalinskas

Moscow has sought to justify the war in eastern Ukraine by claiming it historically belongs within the "Russian World", but this ignores the region's deep Ukrainian roots and cosmopolitan heritage.


Conflict

Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jul 10, 2020

Central bank chief’s political ouster discredits Ukraine

By
Anders Åslund

In June, Ukraine secured a vital new IMF program. Continued National Bank of Ukraine independence was a key condition. However, within weeks, NBU chief Yakiv Smolii resigned citing political pressure.


Economy & Business

International Financial Institutions


UkraineAlert

Jul 9, 2020

Coronavirus chaos reigns at front line checkpoints in Russian-occupied Ukraine

By
Eric Fritz

A climate of confusion over coronavirus-related checkpoint crossing procedures is creating havoc and adding to the hardships of civilians living close to the front lines of the Russo-Ukrainian War.


Coronavirus

Crisis Management


UkraineAlert

Jul 8, 2020

Containing the Kremlin: Why the West must rethink policy towards a revisionist Russia

By
Oleksii Reznikov

After more than five years of deadlock in Russia-Ukraine peace talks, it is obvious that fresh approaches are needed in order to end the war on Europe’s eastern frontier and contain the Kremlin.


Conflict

NATO Partnerships


UkraineAlert

Jul 8, 2020

Ukrainian resorts see 30% growth as coronavirus crisis boosts domestic tourism

By
Peter Dickinson

With international travel still heavily restricted due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis, Ukraine's Black Sea holiday resorts are experiencing a major boost as Ukrainians spend their vacations closer to home.


Coronavirus

Ukraine


UkraineAlert

Jul 6, 2020

Czar Putin wants a new age of empires

By
Nataliia Popovych and Danylo Lubkivsky

In both word and deed, Putin has made it clear that he rejects today’s rules-based international order and seeks to reverse the verdict of 1991. His vision for a new age of empires represents an existential challenge to the West.


Conflict

Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jul 2, 2020

Analysis: Ukraine’s central bank governor quits post citing “political pressure”

By
Peter Dickinson

National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Governor Yakiv Smolii submitted his resignation on July 1 in what was widely seen as a major blow to Ukraine’s reform agenda. What does this mean for the country’s future direction?


Economy & Business

Ukraine


UkraineAlert

Jul 1, 2020

Ukraine’s central bank chief resigns leaving Zelenskyy’s reform credentials in tatters

By
Anders Åslund

Ukraine’s reform agenda suffered a serious blow on July 1 when Yakiv Smolii, the highly respected governor of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), resigned due to what he called “systematic political pressure.”


Financial Regulation

Macroeconomics

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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’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

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’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

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’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

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

Mar 28, 2018

Ukraine’s Glaring National Security Gap that No One Has Heard Of

By Anders Åslund

My article about Ukraine’s new electricity tariffs aroused quite a few interesting comments, which deserve responses. Since these comments are private and many from people in high positions, I shall not mention their names. The arguments circle around pricing, ownership, privatization, investment, and taxation. The natural start is ownership. No one favors state enterprises. They […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 27, 2018

Good to Be King: Ukraine’s Fugitive Oligarch Blocks Reforms and Benefits from International Handouts While Under House Arrest

By Oleksandr Kharchenko

Corruption is still a major challenge in Ukraine, and the energy sector is particularly vulnerable to illegal activity. But although it is tempting to view corruption as a problem indigenous to Ukraine, outside actors—sometimes tolerated or even supported by the government in Kyiv—play a leading role in perpetuating corruption inside Ukraine. A key illustration of […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 25, 2018

Exclusive: New Owner of Kyiv Post Promises Editorial Independence

By Diane Francis

On March 21, the hearts of reformers and journalists sank when Mohammad Zahoor sold the crusading Kyiv Post to Odesa businessman Adnan Kivan. Many were convinced that the new owner would soften the editorial line of Ukraine’s top English language newspaper. But in an interview March 25, Kivan said he bought the newspaper because of […]

Russia Syria

UkraineAlert

Mar 23, 2018

Ukraine Is Serious about Privatization This Time

By Oksana Bedratenko

Since 2014, privatization in Ukraine has made little progress. Well-connected oligarchs could no longer dominate the privatization process, as had often been the case in the past because of strengthened public scrutiny and involvement of international donors, yet vested interests were still powerful enough to block privatizations and the lingering problems associated with the country’s […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 21, 2018

Crucial EU Initiative that Outs Kremlin Lies Under Fire

By Halya Coynash

A crucial program that identifies Kremlin methods of disinformation has come under attack. Alarmingly, one of the key accusations is that its activities constitute an attempt to restrict freedom of speech. The situation could not be more absurd.  The program running into such controversy is the East Stratcom Task Force and the EU vs Disinfo […]

European Union International Organizations

UkraineAlert

Mar 21, 2018

How the US Can Shore Up Ukraine’s Vulnerabilities in the Black Sea

By Stephen Blank

Four years after the invasion of Crimea and the Donbas, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine continues unabated. For all the failures of the government in Kyiv to reform, Ukraine is still fighting our war. Were it not for Ukrainians’ willingness to defend themselves, NATO would be spending a fortune to reform its past structures and procedures […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 20, 2018

Why Nord Stream 2 Isn’t Just an Ordinary Pipeline

By Diane Francis

Of all nations, Germany must heed the lessons of history, both current and past. This begs the question as to why Germany would help Europe become more energy dependent on a country like Russia that ignores norms, contracts, laws, treaties, and borders. And yet that is exactly what Germany is about to do if it […]

Germany Russia

UkraineAlert

Mar 19, 2018

Ukraine should remove “stringent” disclosure law on civil society

By Gina S. Lentine

There has been an ominous change in the state of freedom of association in Ukraine over the last year. One of Ukraine’s leading activists, Vitaliy Shabunin of the Anti-Corruption Action Center (AntAC), is facing trial on criminal charges and could receive up to five years in prison. The charges are at best exaggerated and at […]

Corruption Rule of Law

UkraineAlert

Mar 15, 2018

Sorry, Putin. Crimea still isn’t yours

By Alexander Vershbow

We must make clear to Moscow that any return to “business as usual” in the West’s relations with Moscow cannot begin without the return of the Donbas, and that no improvement in relations can be complete without the return of Crimea.

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 15, 2018

One Overlooked and Easy Way the Trump Administration Can Help Ukraine

By Anders Åslund

Diplomatic relations between the United States and Ukraine are eminent. As former US Ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer writes in his new book, The Eagle and the Trident, they have almost always been good. Ukraine’s outstanding sacrifice was to give up the third largest nuclear force in the world. An unfortunate consequence was that Russia […]

Ukraine
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