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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

Dec 19, 2019

Putin’s Russia is stagnating but there will be no “Moscow Maidan”

By
Dennis Soltys

The Russian economy is facing stagnation and domestic discontent is on the rise, but the strengths of Putin's authoritarian system mean Ukrainians should not expect a repeat of their own Maidan movement in Moscow anytime soon.


Democratic Transitions


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Dec 19, 2019

Naftogaz CEO Andriy Kobolyev: “The likelihood of Russia helping us is zero”

By
Diane Francis

Andriy Kobolyev took over the reins of Ukraine’s energy giant Naftogaz during the country's darkest hour in March 2014. Despite huge progress, he continues to face political opposition at home and an array of international challenges courtesy of the Kremlin.


European Union


Geopolitics & Energy Security


UkraineAlert

Dec 19, 2019

Putin’s imperial ambitions mean Ukraine must learn to live with frozen conflict

By
Taras Kuzio

Ukraine's President Zelenskyy says he will make painful concessions to achieve peace with Russia, but Putin's vision of Ukraine as part of Russia's historic heartlands means there is little room for compromise.


Conflict


Geopolitics & Energy Security


UkraineAlert

Dec 17, 2019

Paris impasse: Time for Zelenskyy to get real about Russia

By
Oleksiy Goncharenko

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's long-awaited first meeting with Vladimir Putin failed to provide a breakthrough towards peace, leading to calls for more realism in relations with Russia.


Conflict


Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding


UkraineAlert

Dec 17, 2019

Mr. Kuleba comes to Washington

By
Melinda Haring

Ukraine’s Deputy PM Dmytro Kuleba visited Washington, DC, last week to reassure the US government that President Zelenskyy’s team remains committed to the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration.


Democratic Transitions


Geopolitics & Energy Security


UkraineAlert

Dec 12, 2019

Lost in translation: Different interpretations of Paris peace talks spell trouble ahead

By
Petro Burkovskyi

The diverging visions for a future peace settlement in Ukraine were on full display in Paris this week as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin met for the first time. These differences were also evident in minor discrepancies that appeared in the Ukrainian and Russian language versions of the summit conclusions.


Conflict


Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding


UkraineAlert

Dec 12, 2019

European integration is taking root across Ukraine despite Russia’s best efforts

By
Alyona Getmanchuk

A new nationwide study has highlighted the progress made across Ukraine towards greater European integration as the country seeks to move closer to the rest of Europe despite Russian efforts to derail the process and reassert its dominant position.


European Union


Eurozone


UkraineAlert

Dec 11, 2019

Russia-Ukraine Paris peace talks: The view from Berlin

By
Mattia Nelles

Monday’s Normandy Four summit in the French capital saw German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France’s Emmanuel Macron sitting down with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin in a bid to end years of deadly stalemate and bring to an end the undeclared war between Russia and Ukraine in the Donbas. What kind of impression did the long-awaited Paris summit make in Berlin?


Conflict


Germany


UkraineAlert

Dec 10, 2019

How not to discuss with Russia

By
Anders Åslund

With global security threatened by the dawn of a new Cold War, dialogue between Russia and the West has never been more important, but when the desire for discussion prevents honest appraisal of the facts, the results can be counterproductive, argues Anders Åslund


International Norms


Politics & Diplomacy


UkraineAlert

Dec 10, 2019

Q&A: What do Paris talks mean for the Russia-Ukraine peace process?

By
Peter Dickinson

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for the first time during long-awaited Normandy Four peace talks in Paris this week. While the meeting failed to produce any major breakthroughs, it did result in progress on a number of technical issues and a commitment to continue dialogue in spring 2020. What does this mean for the Russia-Ukraine peace process?


Conflict


Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding

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.

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 24, 2017

Let’s Make America Great Again by Making Washington Transparent

By Ariel Cohen

The testimonies of Donald Trump, Jr., Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort before Congressional investigational committees will be closed to public. Yet they are the highlights of a political crisis that may be deeper than Watergate. In a made-for-TV series, the intrigue connects Washington power politics and espionage with a family saga, and for some comic […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 24, 2017

Rebuttal: Ukraine’s Supreme Court Competition Is a Model Process

By Sergii Koziakov

The resetting of Ukraine’s highest court is one of the cornerstones of judicial reform in the country and will influence the whole judicial system. In his recent article, Josh Cohen claims that Ukraine’s High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ) is impeding the process to build a new Supreme Court, but this is simply false. The […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 20, 2017

Why Congress Should Pass the Russia Sanctions Bill

By Polina Kovaleva

Over the weekend, Congress reached an agreement on a new Russia sanctions package, though it has been overshadowed by the investigation into connections between President Donald Trump’s administration and Russia. Although the Senate easily passed a strong sanctions bill in June to punish Russia for its aggression in Ukraine and annexation of Crimea, the White House […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 19, 2017

The Only Winning Strategy for Ukraine

By Diane Francis

Imagine if, on June 14, Ukraine launched its first independent anti-corruption court and began hearing dozens of cases against people in high places. Imagine if, by mid-July, several oligarchs and public officials were convicted of corruption, and their assets confiscated. Unfortunately, neither are true. A June 14 deadline for the court imposed by the IMF […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2017

Kadyrov Flaunts Chechnya’s de Facto Independence

By Dylan Myles-Primakoff

The July 18 episode of HBO’s “Real Sports” features a surprising interview subject—Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Russia’s Chechen Republic, in his first interview with a Western journalist since 2014. While the interview’s main theme is Kadyrov’s use of mixed martial arts as a political instrument, an excerpt released before the episode aired focused on […]

Russia

UkraineAlert

Jul 18, 2017

MH17 Plane Crash: Completing a Circle after Three Years

By Michael Bociurkiw

The first relative of one of the passengers of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 that I ever met was Jordan Withers. Thanks to the BBC, we were brought together for the making of a documentary into one of the worst civil aviation disasters in modern history. That disaster was the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 17, 2017

Twelve Myths about Change in Ukraine

By Alexander J. Motyl

Most Ukrainians will tell you that “nothing has changed” since the Euromaidan Revolution. Meanwhile, most Ukrainian analysts bemoan that Ukraine’s elites are resisting change and that, unless Ukraine changes more quickly, the country will backtrack and be lost. And everyone seems to agree that no change is possible unless corruption is fully eliminated. These views […]

France Germany

UkraineAlert

Jul 14, 2017

Poland’s Revolutionary Lessons for Ukraine

By Krzysztof Stanowski

In the last thirty years, Ukraine has undergone three revolutions: the Revolution on Granite (1990), the Orange Revolution (2004-2005), and the Revolution of Dignity (2013-2014)—each about different values. The first one was about the right to independence, the second about fair elections, and the third about the right to choose the country’s geopolitical direction. For […]

Poland Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 13, 2017

There He Goes Again. Putin Meddles in the South Caucasus

By Stephen Blank

Russia President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump likely agreed to restrict intervention in the affairs of third countries at the G-20 summit. This agreement, however, contradicts Russian foreign policy. In Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, Russia seeks to curtail the ability of these governments to pursue independent foreign policies. A series of recent probes […]

Russia The Caucasus

UkraineAlert

Jul 11, 2017

From the Revolution of Dignity to the Education of Dignity

By Volodymyr Turchynovskyy

I am convinced that the Revolution of Dignity has taught us a powerful lesson, one that is captured by the saying, “A free society is a moral achievement.” The same idea is profoundly elaborated on in Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks’ acceptance speech as the 2016 winner of the Templeton Prize. With these ideas in mind, […]

Ukraine