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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

Aug 6, 2019

Don’t write off the Donbas yet

By
Alexander Khrebet

On July 21, three pro-Western parties collectively won 37 percent in the Donbas. These election results show that true political competition has come to the Donbas for the first time.


Elections


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Aug 6, 2019

The case against parliamentary immunity in Ukraine

By
Manfred Richter and Miriam Kosmehl

In Ukraine, abolishing parliamentary immunity is a popular notion, because the Verkhovna Rada is one of the least-trusted institutions. Traditionally, some of Ukraine’s lawmakers find a seat in the Rada attractive because they seek protection from prosecution while pursuing their individual interests.


Corruption


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Aug 1, 2019

The most outrageous case this summer that no one has heard of

By
Olga Tokariuk

Misinformation, disinformation, and outright fakes played a role in assembling the case, which should be seen as another chapter in Russia's hybrid war against Ukraine.


Disinformation


Italy


UkraineAlert

Jul 31, 2019

Nine names to watch in Ukraine’s next parliament

By
Melinda Haring

Five political parties will enter the next parliament, and four of the five support a Western path for Ukraine. But will the new parliament be more or less reform minded than the previous one?


Elections


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2019

Three easy wins for Ukraine

By
Andreas Umland

Now that Ukraine’s elections have passed, few would disagree that numerous new laws, resolutions, and policies need to be implemented to make the state function better.


Elections


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Jul 30, 2019

A plan to transform Ukraine’s notoriously bad parliament

By
Yuri Polakiwsky

Passing such legislation in the early days of a new parliament would be a monumental achievement


Corruption


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Jul 26, 2019

His star is on the rise

By
Melinda Haring

Now, Oleksiy Honcharuk may be the next prime minister of Ukraine.


Elections


Political Reform


UkraineAlert

Jul 25, 2019

How Russians make and hide their dirty money abroad, and what can be done to stop it

By
Oleh Havrylyshyn

Most readers will not be surprised by the message of Anders Åslund’s new book Russia’s Crony Capitalism—Russia has evolved into a kleptocracy based on a combination of state capitalism and market principles—but they may be shocked by the sheer scale of wealth concentration in the hands of the privileged few, in the tens and hundreds […]


Corruption


Financial Regulation


UkraineAlert

Jul 25, 2019

The company you keep

By
Andreas Umland

This year’s presidential and parliamentary elections cleaned house and swept out many of the old dinosaurs. But will these new faces make any difference in the way the country runs?


Political Reform


Rule of Law


UkraineAlert

Jul 25, 2019

Reagan made history, and Zelenskyy can too. Here’s how.

By
Michael Yurkovich

Zelenskyy would be wise to follow Reagan’s example and be equally bold and decisive in his efforts to improve the lives of ordinary Ukrainians and bring Ukraine to its rightful place in the world.


Democratic Transitions


Economy & Business

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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.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Apr 19, 2017

The Right Land Reform Could Transform Ukraine Now

By Aivaras Abromavičius and Alexey Mushak

Largely in response to the IMF’s condition for further aid, Ukraine is on the verge of launching land reform, possibly its most dramatic and important reform to date. The land reform concept that Prime Minister Volodymyr Groisman has proposed, however, is unlikely to gain support from either the agricultural sector or from parliament. Due to […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 18, 2017

Why We Continue to Misunderstand Putin’s War in Ukraine

By Taras Kuzio

The Euromaidan and Russia’s annexation of Crimea have turned Ukraine into a popular media topic. But Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine has also led to a giant surge in academic and think tank publications about Ukraine, with more than three hundred published since 2014. These scholarly and expert analyses have taken five main […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 17, 2017

Meet Ulana Suprun: Ukraine’s Top Doctor Takes on Tax Chief and Corrupt System

By Diane Francis

In March, Ukraine’s reformers applauded when the National Anti-Corruption Bureau arrested Roman Nasirov, the country’s chief tax and customs official, on embezzlement charges. But he claimed he was having a heart attack, called an ambulance, and was diagnosed as too ill to be taken to court. Such tricks might have worked before, but this time […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 17, 2017

Why Investors Are Giving Ukraine a Second Chance

By Daniel Bilak

Ukraine today is open and transparent, but foreign investors are often taken aback by its challenges. While corruption and property rights are issues, any objective assessment must recognize the monumental strides the country has taken on these issues. After three years of reforms, society is fatigued, and the mood is pessimistic. The current media narrative—that […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 17, 2017

New Poll Shows Ukrainians Hungry for Change

By Oksana Bedratenko and Katie LaRoque

A new poll shows that Ukrainians are hungry for change and finally seeing it at the local level. On April 10, the International Republican Institute (IRI) released its annual municipal survey, tracking the views of more than 19,000 Ukrainians in twenty-four cities. Three years since IRI’s first survey, residents in fifteen of the twenty-four cities […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 12, 2017

Secretary Tillerson, Here’s Why Taxpayers Should Care about Ukraine

By Melinda Haring

At the Group of Seven meeting in Lucca, Italy, on April 11, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson asked the other foreign ministers, “Why should US taxpayers be interested in Ukraine?” US Senator Rob Portman and several other panelists answered that question at an April 5 conference on Ukraine in Washington, DC, sponsored by the […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 11, 2017

Is Belarus coming unglued too?

By Francišak Viačorka

The Russian crackdown showed that the country’s internal problems are getting sharper, and the Kremlin will likely not have enough resources to continue its financial support of Lukashenka’s regime.

Belarus Russia

UkraineAlert

Apr 11, 2017

Why Does the IMF Keep Funding Ukraine?

By Anders Åslund

When the International Monetary Fund’s board convened on April 3, it found that the Ukrainian government had fulfilled only five out of fourteen structural reform conditions it had outlined. Nevertheless, Ukraine received a $1 billion installment of its $17.5 billion financial support for the government’s reform program. Was it pure politics that Ukraine got a […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 10, 2017

Why Did Putin Get Stuck in Eastern Ukraine?

By Peter Dickinson

Russia’s hybrid war against Ukraine is now entering its fourth year, but there was a time when few expected it to last even four weeks. The virtually bloodless seizure of Crimea, which fell to Russian troops in early 2014 without a fight, led most observers to conclude that Ukraine was effectively defenseless and at Moscow’s […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 10, 2017

Is Russia Winning in Serbia? Maybe, But Not for the Reasons You Think

By Dimitar Bechev

One year ago, in April 2016 when Serbia held snap polls, the BBC ran the headline “Pro-EU Prime Minister Vučić Claims Victory.” One year later, after Aleksandar Vučić’s resounding win in the presidential election on April 2, the international media has styled him “Putin’s Serb ally.” Who’s right and where is Serbian foreign policy heading? […]

European Union International Organizations