Stay Updated

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

Jan 2, 2025

Missiles, AI, and drone swarms: Ukraine’s 2025 defense tech priorities

By
Nataliia Kushnerska

Ukrainian defense tech companies will be focusing on domestic missile production, drone swarms, and AI technologies in 2025 as Ukraine seeks to remain one step ahead of Russia in the race to innovate, writes Nataliia Kushnerska.

Conflict
Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Dec 24, 2024

Putin faces antisemitism accusations following attack on ‘ethnic Jews’

By
Joshua Stein

Russian President Vladimir Putin is facing fresh antisemitism accusations after claiming that “ethnic Jews” are seeking to “tear apart” the Russian Orthodox Church, writes Joshua Stein

Civil Society
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Dec 24, 2024

How might Germany’s coming election shape future support for Ukraine?

By
Stuart Jones, Katherine Spencer

There is a good chance Germany’s snap elections in February 2025 will result in increased support for Ukraine but Kyiv will be hoping the campaign does not send signals of Western disunity to Moscow, write Stuart Jones and Katherine Spencer.

Conflict
Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Dec 19, 2024

Five things Russia’s invasion has taught the world about Ukraine

By
Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine has thrust the country into the global spotlight and transformed international perceptions of Ukraine in ways that will resonate for decades to come, writes Peter Dickinson.

Defense Technologies
Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Dec 19, 2024

Ukraine seeks further progress toward EU membership in 2025

By
Kateryna Odarchenko

With little prospect of an invitation to join NATO while the war with Russia continues, Ukraine will be hoping to advance further on the road toward EU integration in 2025, writes Kateryna Odarchenko.

Civil Society
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Dec 17, 2024

Putin’s quiet Syrian surrender reveals the weakness behind his intimidation tactics

By
Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin’s inability to save his Syrian ally Bashar Assad is a timely reminder that Russia is far weaker than many appreciate and Western fears of Kremlin escalation are wildly exaggerated, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Dec 12, 2024

Why Finland thinks Finlandization is a bad idea for Ukraine

By
Minna Ålander

Some believe the Finlandization of Ukraine is the most realistic option to end Russia’s invasion, but any attempt to impose neutrality would leave Ukraine in a precarious position, writes Minna Ålander.

Conflict
Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Dec 12, 2024

Foreign troops help Putin avoid pitfalls of another Russian mobilization

By
Katherine Spencer

Russia’s growing use of foreign troops in Ukraine is a dangerous trend that promises to prolong the war and has the potential to fuel international instability, writes Katherine Spencer.

Central Asia
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Dec 10, 2024

Ukraine is expanding its long-range arsenal for deep strikes inside Russia

By
Peter Dickinson

Ukraine is producing its own arsenal of long-range weapons as Kyiv seeks to bypass Western fears of escalation and bring Vladimir Putin’s invasion home to Russia in 2025, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Dec 10, 2024

Russian victory in Ukraine would spark a new era of global insecurity

By
Victor Liakh

If Vladimir Putin’s Russia is allowed to claim even a limited victory in Ukraine, it will embolden other authoritarian regimes and plunge the world into a new era of insecurity, writes Victor Liakh.

Civil Society
Conflict

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.

Follow us on social media
and support our work

Content

UkraineAlert

Aug 19, 2015

The Soviet Playbook in Ukraine

By Aaron Korwea

It appears that Russian President Vladimir Putin is losing the war in Ukraine. Gone are the talks about seizing so-called Novorossiya—the strip of land from Kharkiv to Odesa—and establishing a land bridge to occupied Crimea. Even though recent developments suggest a possible offensive to expand the territory Russia and its proxies now hold, perhaps with […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 17, 2015

“We want Ukraine to be a European country, not a Putin country,” Says Ukrainian MP

By Diane M. Francis

World attention focuses on ISIS and Iran, with its half an atomic weapon. But the biggest geopolitical issue is Vladimir Putin, backed by thousands of nuclear weapons, who is gradually conquering Ukraine, a democracy with 45 million people the size of Germany and Poland combined. In just over a year, Russia has seized 9 percent […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 17, 2015

Ukraine’s Fall Elections Matter More Than You Think

By Brian Mefford

With less than 80 days before election day in Ukraine, mayoral races are already heating up. Parliament approved a new election law that does two things: Ukraine will use an open-list system and the country will hold runoffs for mayors in larger cities. These two features combined with the potential decentralization reforms being debated by […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 17, 2015

Ukraine Must Finish Reforming Public Procurement Practices as Part of Anti-Corruption Drive

By Josh Cohen

As Ukraine struggles with a collapsing economy and Russian-backed separatists in the Donbas, a third crisis threatens its long-term national stability: endemic corruption. Ukraine ranks 142nd out of 175 countries on Transparency International’s latest annual Corruption Perceptions Index. Of the fifteen former Soviet republics, only Tajikistan and Uzbekistan score lower. Official graft is widespread, but […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 13, 2015

Russia’s Occupation of Ukraine Still Top Threat to Global Security

By Stephen Blank

Recent articles in the US media suggest that the Pentagon is “rebalancing” its forces towards Europe to meet the Russian challenge. At the same time, NATO plans to halve the number of air patrols over the Baltic. Supposedly the Russian threat to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania has ebbed, and governments are finally stepping up to […]

NATO Russia

UkraineAlert

Aug 12, 2015

How Mr. X Outsmarted Mr. Kvit: The Lopsided Progress of Ukraine’s Education Reforms

By Kateryna Smagliy

Let me tell you the story of Mr. X—a student whom I had never seen in class, and who had not shown up for any of his final exams. “Oh, do not worry,” his fellow students reassured me, “it has been like this year in year out.” I could have easily forgotten this trivial episode […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 12, 2015

Ukraine Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

By Andreas Umland

The Ukraine crisis is not only about Ukraine. Far more urgent for humanity as a whole are the commitments made by Russia and other UN Security Council members with regard to Ukraine’s accession to the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT) following the Soviet Union’s collapse. The NPT aims to curtail the spread of weapons […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 11, 2015

Even After Iran Deal, Putin Won’t Get His Way in Ukraine

By John E. Herbst

Ever since US Secretary of State John Kerry visited Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi last May, Ukraine’s friends have been concerned that in its eagerness to ensure Kremlin support for a deal with Iran, the White House was willing to let Putin have his way in Ukraine. Advocates of this outlook point to five […]

Iran Russia

UkraineAlert

Aug 10, 2015

Here’s Why I’m Hopeful About Eastern Ukraine

By Yuriy Didula

In July, residents of Slovyansk and Kramatorsk marked the first anniversary of liberation from the occupation of Russian-backed separatists. Both cities experienced their rule for nearly four months in 2014. In the last year, marches, concerts, and city lights with slogans promoting peace have helped reinforce a growing sense of national pride. And yet a […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 10, 2015

Why Eastern Ukraine Matters to Ramzan Kadyrov

By Ruben Gzirian

No Instagram account is more entertaining, more dumbfounding, and more terrifying than that of Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov. On any given day, one is guaranteed to see video clips ranging from Kadyrov praying before dawn in the Akhmad Kadyrov Mosque to playing soccer at the FC Terek facilities (Kadyrov was the President of FC Terek […]

Russia Ukraine