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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

Mar 5, 2023

It is time for the West to welcome Ukraine home

By
Michael Druckman

Russia's full-scale invasion has strengthened Ukraine's commitment to a future as part of the Western world. Western leaders should now respond by intensifying Ukraine's further integration, writes Michael Druckman.


Conflict


Democratic Transitions


UkraineAlert

Mar 3, 2023

Premature peace with Putin would be disastrous for international security

By
Peter Dickinson

Perhaps the best way to illustrate the perils of appeasing Putin with a premature peace deal is by imagining where the world would be today if Ukraine had indeed fallen one year ago, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Freedom and Prosperity


UkraineAlert

Mar 2, 2023

Ukraine’s women are playing a key role in the fight against Russia

By
Adrienne Ross

From frontline soldiers to unofficial ambassadors, Ukraine's women are playing a key role in their country's struggle to defeat the Russian army and end Vladimir Putin's criminal invasion, writes Adrienne Ross.


Civil Society


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Feb 28, 2023

Tech innovation helps Ukraine even the odds against Russia’s military might

By
Mykhailo Fedorov

Over the past year, Ukrainians have demonstrated their ability to defeat Russia using a combination of raw courage and innovative military tech, writes Ukraine's Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.


Conflict


Cybersecurity


UkraineAlert

Feb 28, 2023

Calls mount for Russia to face tribunal for aggression against Ukraine

By
Irina Paliashvili

As Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine enters its second year, calls are mounting for the establishment of a special tribunal to try the Russian leadership for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, writes Irina Paliashvili.


Conflict


European Union


UkraineAlert

Feb 28, 2023

Russia’s invasion one year on: Ukraine is stronger than ever

By
Vitaly Sych

Vladimir Putin expected a short and victorious war that would extinguish Ukrainian independence and force the country back into the Russian orbit. One year on, Ukraine has never been stronger, writes Vitaly Sych.


Civil Society


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Feb 23, 2023

Invasion anniversary: Does Putin still have a pathway to victory in Ukraine?

By
Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin's decision to invade Ukraine is widely seen as one of the biggest geopolitical blunders of the modern era, but as the war enters its second year, could the Russian dictator still have a pathway to potential victory?


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2023

Superhumans Center: Symbol of Ukrainian defiance amid Russia’s war

By
Andrey Stavnitser

Opening in the coming months, the Superhumans Center war trauma hospital in western Ukraine is a symbol of Ukrainian defiance as Russia's brutal invasion enters its second year, writes co-founder Andrey Stavnitser.


Civil Society


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Feb 21, 2023

Putin could still win unless the West speeds up efforts to arm Ukraine

By
Dennis Soltys

Ukraine's international partners are gradually providing the country with the weapons it needs to beat Russia, but excessive caution and continued delays could still allow Vladimir Putin to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.


Conflict


Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Feb 21, 2023

US foreign policy: China is important but the top priority is stopping Russia

By
Richard D. Hooker, Jr.

Members of the US foreign policy establishment are wrong to prioritize a "China First" perspective at a time when Putin's Russia is waging a major war of aggression in Ukraine, writes Richard D. Hooker, Jr.


China


Conflict

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Content

UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2016

Russia’s Pernicious Hybrid War Against Ukraine

By Andreas Umland

In recent months, the relative calming of the Russian-Ukrainian war in the Donbas has led many observers to describe this confrontation as yet another “frozen conflict” in the post-Soviet space. Yet even if Russian military activities ceased completely, the analogy is misleading. It is not always understood that Ukraine’s neighbor to the east is actively […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2016

How Soft Power Works: Russian Passportization and Compatriot Policies Paved Way for Crimean Annexation and War in Donbas

By Agnia Grigas

The following is an edited excerpt from Agnia Grigas’ new book, Beyond Crimea: The New Russian Empire. The book examines Moscow’s policies toward Russian compatriots in former Soviet republics, including Ukraine where they laid the groundwork for Crimea’s annexation and the conflict in the Donbas. Moscow’s policies towards its “compatriots”—loosely defined as ethnic Russians, Russian […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 17, 2016

A Pyrrhic Victory for President Poroshenko

By Anders Åslund

On February 16, the Ukrainian parliament deemed the performance of its government unsatisfactory with 247 votes, but only 194 parliamentarians voted for a no-confidence measure. The government did not fall as some had expected. Overtly, this strange vote may appear a victory for President Petro Poroshenko, but it seems a Pyrrhic victory that may have […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 17, 2016

Making Sense of the Turmoil in Kyiv

By John E. Herbst

Turmoil in Kyiv continued as President Petro Poroshenko called on both Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin to resign on February 16. The President’s parliamentary faction then introduced a resolution in the Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, describing the performance of the cabinet of ministers, headed by Yatsenyuk, as inadequate. That measure passed, but […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 16, 2016

How to Reverse Putin’s Damage in Syria

By John E. Herbst

Moscow’s operation in Syria was designed to shore up the Assad regime, its long-time ally in the Middle East, from falling to various opposition forces, whose strongest elements were the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), the al-Qaeda affiliate Nusra Front, and other extremist Sunni groups. Over time this intervention has also given […]

Russia Syria

UkraineAlert

Feb 16, 2016

A Way Out of the Crisis

By Sergii Leshchenko

In the village of Glebovka, on a road leading to the old hunting grounds of ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, there is a small enclave of villas. Here, in the deep forest by the shores of the Kyiv water reservoir, sits a guest house that belongs to former Rada Deputy Mykola Martynenko, where confidential meetings between […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 15, 2016

Kissinger’s Vapid Vision Thing

By Alexander J. Motyl

For more evidence of how badly Russian President Vladimir Putin has damaged the international order, take a look at former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger’s recently articulated “vision for US-Russia relations.” It consists of large swaths of boilerplate language and several disingenuous arguments demonstrating that the architect of détente has no idea how to […]

Russia

UkraineAlert

Feb 15, 2016

Who Should Pay for the Restoration of the Donbas?

By Anders Åslund

It appears a real possibility that the Donbas will be reunified with the rest of Ukraine this year: its occupation simply costs the Kremlin too much. Its Novorossiya project has failed, and the Donbas on its own has no appeal to the Russian people. And Russia cannot get rid of the current suffocating financial sanctions […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 10, 2016

Where is Ukraine’s Government Headed Now? Four Possible Scenarios

By Tim Ash

Ukraine’s ongoing political crisis offers observers an opportunity to analyze the current state of affairs and determine likely scenarios for the country’s political future in the near term. First, the recent resignation of Aivaras Abromavicius from the position of Minister of Economic Development and Trade did not appear to be coordinated with either the reform […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 9, 2016

Ukraine’s Got a Real Army Now. But Is It Preparing to Fight the Last Battle?

By Ruben Gzirian

The prolonged stalemate of Minsk II has provided the Ukrainian military ample opportunity to address a series of longstanding challenges stretching back to the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych. While it is clear that the Ukrainian military has improved since its disastrous defeat at Debaltseve in February 2015, evaluating the real effect of ongoing reforms is […]

Russia Ukraine