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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

Jul 16, 2019

Ukraine House Toronto highlights Ukraine’s renaissance

By
Alexa Chopivsky and Paul Grod

“Ukraine is having this renaissance, a boom; the closest thing I can compare it to is Berlin seventeen years ago, where the kids are just taking over,” said Darko Skulsky, co-producer of HBO hit series Chernobyl.

Civil Society
Ukraine


UkraineAlert

Jul 11, 2019

How the US can fight Russian disinformation for real

By
Nina Jankowicz

For the past three years, I have been on the front lines of the information war, most recently in Ukraine, Lithuania, and Georgia. I have worked alongside, interviewed and briefed policymakers throughout the region, and these experiences have presented a grim picture: the United States is abdicating its leadership in countering Russian disinformation. Where we […]

Cybersecurity
Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jul 10, 2019

Who will be Ukraine’s next prime minister?

By
Melinda Haring

Choosing a political government sends exactly the wrong message, and one should expect a serious case of Ukraine fatigue to quickly reemerge among donors.

Elections
Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Jul 8, 2019

Will Zelenskyy succeed?

By
Mykola Vorobiov

In many ways, Zelenskyy’s presidency embodies the “Ukrainian dream,” when a new politician and self-made showman can be elected president and slay the many bad forces that hold Ukraine back.

Democratic Transitions
Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Jul 5, 2019

Zelenskyy shines in Toronto, but his plans need right people and right priorities

By
Anders Åslund

The mentality of the people has to change, and the government has to listen to its citizens and reject corruption.

Political Reform
Politics & Diplomacy


UkraineAlert

Jul 2, 2019

Five reasons why investors are giving Ukraine another look

By
Daniel Bilak

The ambitions of Ukraine House Toronto arise from what UkraineInvest has witnessed over the last year: a renewed confidence in and interest among investors for exposure to the Ukrainian market.

Democratic Transitions
Fiscal and Structural Reform


UkraineAlert

Jun 28, 2019

Finally a new window of investment opportunity in Ukraine?

By
Basil Kalymon

The fight against corruption, linked to a continued commitment to EU integration and general system reform, could greatly boost Ukraine’s economic strength.

Conflict
Corruption


UkraineAlert

Jun 27, 2019

Everything you know about the Donbas is wrong

By
Melinda Haring

Many Western experts avoid the Donbas because it’s a knotty problem without an easy solution, and there’s plenty in Kyiv to keep one busy. I was one of those experts until a few weeks ago, when I finally jumped into a car and sped to Kramatorsk.

Civil Society
Inclusive Growth


UkraineAlert

Jun 27, 2019

Putin finally tells Russians the truth (sort of)

By
Anders Åslund

In his annual television marathon “Direct Line with Vladimir Putin” on June 20, the Russian president did something unusual. To my knowledge, this is the first time he specified the impact of Western sanctions on Russia, which he usually presents as having a positive effect on the Russian economy because of import substitution. “Look, according […]

Conflict
Economic Sanctions


UkraineAlert

Jun 27, 2019

PACE sells out for 33 Million euros

By
Andrej Lushnycky

On June 25, Russia was allowed back into the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) as a full voting member, after being expelled five years ago for its aggression in Ukraine. Through an innocuous sounding measure that pledged to strengthen the assembly’s decision-making processes on credentials and voting, 118 parliamentarians agreed to let […]

Conflict
Human Rights

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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

Jul 5, 2017

Positive Change Is Not Happening in Ukraine’s Courts

By Josh Cohen

In his recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, “Positive Change Is Happening in Ukraine,” Prime Minister Volodymyr Groisman’s glosses over the real driver of a business-friendly climate: the courts. He fails to mention the courts, judicial reform, or the process to rebuild the Supreme Court, a process which is being sabotaged. Ukraine’s judiciary is riven with […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 3, 2017

US Trade Actions Threaten Ukraine and Strengthen Russia

By Daniel Valk

As President Donald Trump prepares for his first meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin this week at the G-20 in Hamburg, Germany, the US Department of Commerce is making two important trade decisions that threaten the economic and geopolitical stability of Ukraine. In 2014, as Ukraine was reeling from the annexation of Crimea, and as […]

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 3, 2017

War in Ukraine Was Years in the Making

By Vera Zimmerman

Ukraine is the only country in the world that has ongoing experience with a hybrid war—a simultaneous and adaptive military strategy that blends conventional and non-conventional means. As a result, it offers valuable lessons that could help the West better understand emerging threats. In the last three years, Ukraine has found itself drawn into the […]

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 30, 2017

Ukraine’s Trashy Politics

By Diane Francis

Lviv is Ukraine’s most beautiful city, an exquisite UNESCO World Heritage site that has survived attacks and changed hands for seven centuries. The city is a successful IT hub and its hotels, restaurants, and architecture attract 2.5 million visitors a year. Since 2006, its reform-minded mayor and city council have upgraded infrastructure and enticed industry […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 29, 2017

War in Ukraine 2.0

By Melinda Haring

Russia is targeting the most capable and dedicated parts of the Ukrainian military. On June 27, Colonel Maksim Shapoval, commander of an elite Ukrainian military intelligence unit, was killed when his car exploded during his morning commute in downtown Kyiv. A few hours later, a massive cyberattack took out computer systems across the city. The […]

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 28, 2017

Ukraine’s Least Sexy Reform Is Transforming Villages with New Roads, Police, and Even a Telescope

By Ruslan Minich

It used to be dark, and children had to jump from stone to stone to get to school. Now, the roads are smooth and brightly lit. Water flows from the mountains by gravity, and thus is free of charge and available to everyone. This is what the residents of southwestern Ukraine’s Poliana village say decentralization […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 26, 2017

What Happens if Russia Turns Up the Heat Again in Ukraine?

By Andreas Umland

Will the low-intensity war in the Donbas continue its current course in the coming years, or will Moscow turn up the heat there, as it occasionally does? It’s hard to say. “It all comes down to geopolitics and what Putin wants to do,” said Ihor Kozak, an independent Canadian defense and security expert who visited […]

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 26, 2017

How History Will Remember Vladimir Putin

By Stephen Blank

To paraphrase Pravda in 1929, Putin is the Stalin of today. Nobody since Stalin’s death has achieved such longevity or uncontested power over Russia as Putin has. Nevertheless, tomorrow he may be remembered as the Brezhnev of today, for he has presided over a galloping stagnation of the economy and public morality. At the same […]

Russia
Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 26, 2017

In Ukraine, Health Security Is National Security

By Olena Kucheruk and Alex T. Johnson

Three years after its invasion of Ukraine, Russia continues to pummel the country with cyberattacks, ruthless propaganda, and Grad missiles. But Ukraine’s dysfunctional institutions, especially its health care system, undermine Ukraine’s national security as well. Policies to reduce the enormous stress on Ukraine’s military and government alone ignore the delivery of core services. Without those […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2017

Memo to President Trump: It’s Not “The Ukraine” Anymore

By Peter Dickinson

The first meeting between Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and US President Donald Trump on June 20 was widely hailed as a small but significant victory for Ukraine, signaling continued American support at a time when many fear Ukraine’s struggle with Russia is in danger of becoming a forgotten war. The only fly in the ointment […]

Russia
Ukraine