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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 18, 2026

Putin’s obsession with ‘denazifying’ Ukraine makes peace impossible

By
Peter Dickinson

Putin’s obsession with “denazifying” Ukraine makes a mockery of efforts to portray the Russian invasion as a mere land grab and helps explain why there has been no meaningful progress toward peace despite more than a year of US-led efforts, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jun 18, 2026

Ukrainian drones are cutting Russian logistics and reshaping the battlefield

By
David Kirichenko

In recent months, Ukraine has dramatically expanded the use of mid-range drones to disrupt Russian logistics behind the front lines and shape the battlefield for future offensive operations, writes David Kirichenko.


Conflict


Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Jun 18, 2026

Ukraine begins EU membership talks amid skepticism over associate option

By
Andreas Umland

Ukraine officially opened membership talks with the ‌European Union this week in a move hailed by Ukrainian officials as “a Rubicon” moment for the war-torn country. While this is welcome news for Kyiv, it remains unclear how long it could still take to actually join the EU, writes Andreas Umland.


Conflict


Drones


UkraineAlert

Jun 16, 2026

Russia escalates war on Ukrainian heritage and national identity

By
Mercedes Sapuppo

Russia this week bombed one of the most sacred religious sites in Ukraine, the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, marking the latest escalation in a Kremlin campaign to target the symbols of Ukrainian heritage and national identity, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.


Civil Society


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 11, 2026

Putin can no longer shield ordinary Russians from the war he unleashed

By
Maksym Beznosiuk, William Dixon

Ukraine’s recent drone strikes on St. Petersburg provided arguably the most visible indication to date that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion is not going according to plan, write Maksym Beznosiuk and William Dixon.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jun 9, 2026

Ukrainian civilians face new threat from Russia’s upgraded jet drones

By
David Kirichenko

Russia has reportedly begun deploying a new generation of jet-powered strike drones against Ukrainian targets in recent weeks as the Kremlin seeks to counter the growing effectiveness of Ukraine’s interceptor drones, writes David Kirichenko.


Conflict


Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Jun 9, 2026

Countries across Russia’s former empire are reclaiming place names to assert identity

By
Joseph Epstein

Ukraine's campaign to strip Soviet and Russian imperial place names from the country’s towns and cities is not a reaction to the current war so much as the leading edge of a region-wide rejection of Moscow's cartography, writes Joseph Epstein.


Central Asia


Civil Society


UkraineAlert

Jun 8, 2026

The Ukraine Support Act sends a strong signal even if it won’t send weapons

By
Leslie Shedd

As momentum in the Russia-Ukraine War shifts in Kyiv’s favor, the US Congress took a tentative step last week toward rewarding Ukraine’s progress with much-needed weapons for their troops and support for the country, writes Leslie Shedd.


Conflict


Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding


UkraineAlert

Jun 4, 2026

Ukraine just showed the whole world that Putin is losing control of the war

By
Peter Dickinson

Ukraine's audacious drone strike on St. Petersburg as the Russian city hosted a flagship international economic forum known as "Putin's Davos" sent a clear signal to global audiences that the Kremlin dictator is losing control of the war, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jun 4, 2026

Europe cannot afford to leave Ukraine trapped in the geopolitical grey zone

By
Maksym Beznosiuk, William Dixon

Europe cannot afford to leave Ukraine stuck in the geopolitical grey zone as this uncertainty fuels Russia's invasion and feeds Putin's dreams of a new Russian Empire, write Maksym Beznosiuk and William Dixon.


Conflict


Drones

spotlight

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.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Sep 21, 2017

Sadovyi: Stop Fighting, Start Working Together

By Melinda Haring

Andriy Sadovyi, the mayor of Lviv and leader of the Samopomich Party, hasn’t had an easy year. He was seen as the most likely challenger to President Petro Poroshenko in the 2019 presidential election before a fire at waste facility in May 2016 killed four and sullied his sterling reputation. As a result, his numbers […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Sep 19, 2017

Warrior’s Heart Program Helps Ukrainian Veterans Heal

By Iuliia Mendel

Late on the night of September 6, Oleksiy Tomilko posted a short line on social media: “Perhaps someone wants to visit me.” He was a fifty-year old soldier who had been brought to a military hospital in his native city of Lviv after he had been wounded in the Donbas, where Ukraine has been fighting […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Sep 19, 2017

Why Arming Ukraine Would End the Deadlock in the Donbas

By Adam Reichardt and Maksym Khylko

Signals from the Trump administration are beginning to indicate a new direction in the United States’ support of Ukraine. At the end of August, Secretary of Defense James Mattis stated that the Pentagon is “actively reviewing” the issue of defensive weapons, rightly noting that “defensive weapons are not provocative unless you are an aggressor, and […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Sep 19, 2017

Ukraine Is Back

By Anders Åslund

For the first time in five years, Ukraine sold its bonds on the international market. On September 18, the Ukrainian government sold $3 billion of fifteen-year Eurobonds with a 7.375 percent annual yield. The bond issue was oversubscribed by more than three times. Initial statements mentioned a planned sale of $2.5 billion, so the Ukrainian […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Sep 13, 2017

The Key to Fixing Ukraine Isn’t What You Think It Is

By Michael Getto

Health care reform should be a top priority for Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada this fall because it can help transform Ukraine. As President Petro Poroshenko has said, “I am sure that healthcare…reforms would help [in] attracting investment and increasing economic growth,” and he’s absolutely right. In June, parliament greenlighted comprehensive health reform legislation in the first […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Sep 13, 2017

Russia: It’s Not Just Putin

By Khatuna Mshvidobadze

With Russian fingers apparently thrust into all manner of cybercrime and espionage, Western publics are trying to make sense of it all. But most news accounts do not include the key to deciphering Russian behavior in cyberspace. What drives Russia is its unique nexus of government, business, and crime, perpetuated by systemic corruption and glued […]

Cybersecurity Russia

UkraineAlert

Sep 13, 2017

Does Russia Have Hard Power in the US?

By Lada Roslycky

There is something naïve about many people born in democratic countries. They seem to take the human rights, values, and principles upon which their countries are built for granted. Dangerously, they have a difficult time imagining that their rights and freedoms can be manipulated in such a way as to threaten their institutions, national security, […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2017

Russia’s Peacekeeping Proposal in Ukraine Is a Sham

By James J. Coyle

Russia has introduced a United Nations draft resolution for peacekeepers in Ukraine amid acclaim by German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel and the chairman of the Organization for Cooperation and Security in Europe (OSCE). On its face, this would appear to meet a long-standing demand of the government in Kyiv and mark a reversal of Russia’s […]

International Organizations Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2017

North Korean Missile Engines: Not from Ukraine

By Mariana Budjeryn and Andrew Zhalko-Tytarenko

A new report points to Ukraine as a possible source of liquid propellant engines (LPE) powering intercontinental-range missiles successfully ground-tested by North Korea last year and flight-tested this year. As the world grapples with the fait accompli of North Korean nuclear and missile capability, the path Pyongyang took to acquire it is of considerable interest, […]

Korea Russia

UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2017

Ukrainians’ Stock Soars in Central Europe as Employers Vie for Labor

By James Brooke

One of this summer’s big lessons is that the image of Ukrainians has turned around in the region. As Central European governments fight to block EU-mandated quotas of asylum seekers from Syria and Iraq, Ukraine has emerged as the region’s source of desirable guest workers. Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, and Estonian governments have set up recruiting […]

Ukraine