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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

Feb 27, 2024

No opposition candidates allowed in Belarus dictator’s “sham” elections

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Hanna Liubakova</span>

Sunday’s parliamentary and local elections in Belarus were among the most flawed in the thirty-year reign of the country’s authoritarian ruler, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, writes Hanna Liubakova.


Belarus


Civil Society


UkraineAlert

Feb 23, 2024

Making Russia pay for the invasion of Ukraine

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Paul Grod</span>

Using frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine's resistance and recovery is morally justified and would also ease the financial burden on Western economies, writes Paul Grod.


Conflict


Economy & Business


UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2024

Ukrainian long-range drones target Putin’s war machine inside Russia

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Victoria Vdovychenko, Alexander Khara</span>

Ukraine is hoping a new campaign of long-range drone strikes against Russia's strategically vital oil and gas industry can help weaken Putin's war machine, write Victoria Vdovychenko and Alexander Khara.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Feb 22, 2024

Putin’s unpunished Crimean crime set the stage for Russia’s 2022 invasion

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Mercedes Sapuppo</span>

The West's inadequate response to Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea was a major blunder that emboldened Putin and set the stage for the biggest European invasion since World War II, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.


Conflict


Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Feb 20, 2024

Outgunned Ukraine bets on drones as Russian invasion enters third year

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Mykola Bielieskov</span>

As Putin's invasion passes the two-year mark, tech-savvy Ukraine is betting on drones as the best way to overcome Russia's increasingly overwhelming advantage in traditional firepower, writes Mykola Bielieskov.


Civil Society


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Feb 20, 2024

Time is running out to help Ukraine and defend the West

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Victor Pinchuk</span>

The West is potentially overwhelmingly stronger than Russia and can enable Ukraine to win. But this will require far more effort and speed, writes Victor Pinchuk.


Conflict


Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Feb 15, 2024

Ukraine’s Black Sea success offers hope as Russian invasion enters third year

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Peter Dickinson</span>

Ukraine's remarkable success in the Battle of the Black Sea exposes the emptiness of Russia's red lines and provides a road map for victory over Putin, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Feb 12, 2024

Putin’s history lecture reveals his dreams of a new Russian Empire

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Peter Dickinson</span>

Vladimir Putin turned his hotly anticipated interview with Tucker Carlson into a history lecture that laid bare the dangerous delusions and imperial ambitions driving the invasion of Ukraine, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Feb 8, 2024

Removal of Ukraine’s ‘Iron General’ is one of Zelenskyy’s biggest gambles

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Peter Dickinson</span>

President Zelenskyy's decision to remove Ukraine's top general comes as no surprise but is nevertheless one of his biggest gambles of the entire war, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Feb 8, 2024

President Zelenskyy’s dual citizenship proposal presents wartime dilemmas

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Mark Temnycky</span>

President Zelenskyy's recent proposal to allow dual citizenship is a potentially popular but impractical measure in the current wartime conditions, writes Mark Temnycky.


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.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2015

“We Must Keep the Focus on Ukraine and Spread the Truth,” Says New Ukrainian Ambassador

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Larry Luxner</span>

Valeriy Chaly, Ukraine’s new ambassador in Washington, sees the United States as his country’s “main strategic partner” and says he wants to use that bilateral relationship “to resolve the crisis created by Russia in Eastern Europe and find the best model of security in this part of the world.” Chaly, 45, presented his White House […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 3, 2015

The Motivations Behind Poroshenko’s New Anticorruption Drive

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >John E. Herbst</span>

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko’s government appears to have launched a new anticorruption drive with the October 31 detention of Gennadiy Korban, a close associate of oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky and the leader of Ukrop, a political party funded by Kolomoisky. The authorities arrested Korban following an investigation that began last year into the assault on government […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 2, 2015

Ukraine Must Not Pay Russia Back

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Anders Åslund</span>

On December 20, Ukraine is supposed to pay Russia $3 billion in return for a Eurobond that Russian President Vladimir Putin issued in December 2013. Ukraine has no reason to pay. In February 2014, the Kremlin launched military aggression against Ukraine, first annexing Crimea and later pursuing military subversion in southern and eastern Ukraine. For […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 2, 2015

Why the Realists Were Wrong About the War in Ukraine

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Alexander Motyl</span>

The ongoing ceasefire in eastern Ukraine may or may not lead to a lasting peace, but it has already had one important consequence: it has undermined both Russian and realist interpretations of the Russo-Ukrainian war. On August 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Francois Hollande, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed that a ceasefire […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 28, 2015

Five Steps to Unleash Ukraine’s Economy

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Sergiy Tsivkach </span>

Ukraine faces numerous challenges that would be hard for any government to address. However, it must implement economic reforms to stabilize the country and show immediate positive results. Ordinary Ukrainians want to see their bottom line improve, and businesses want fair rules. Developing an effective competition policy to eliminate the poisonous influence of monopolies and […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 26, 2015

A New Generation for a New Ukraine

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Carl Gershman</span>

Editor’s Note: This piece is adapted from a speech Carl Gershman gave to the Ukrainian Catholic Education Foundation on October 24, 2015. Preparing for tonight’s talk has been an unexpected process of learning and discovery. I had thought I understood Ukraine, having given a number of talks and written articles urging the US government to […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 26, 2015

Ukraine Goes to the Polls: Kolomoyskyi Is King Again

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Brian Mefford</span>

As the ballots are counted in Ukraine’s October 25 local elections, early returns and exit polls indicate some surprises. The big story is that oligarch Ihor Kolomoyskyi came out on top. Kolomoyskyi, former governor of Dnipropetrovsk who was dismissed in March by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko for his overreach, backed candidates who look set to […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 26, 2015

As Ukraine Moves Toward Decentralization, Challenges Loom

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Alina Polyakova</span>

Kyiv, Ukraine – On Sunday, October 25, Ukrainians went to the polls to elect mayors and representatives to municipal councils. Under normal circumstances, local elections would go more or less unnoticed by international observers, but with no elections taking place in occupied territories, including Crimea and the Luhansk and Donetsk Peoples’ Republics, these are far […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 23, 2015

Imperial Gamble Doesn’t Pay Off: New Book Gets Ukraine’s History Wrong

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Alexei Sobchenko</span>

In his new book, Imperial Gamble: Putin, Ukraine and the New Cold War, the renowned American journalist Marvin Kalb touches on an issue outside his traditional area of expertise in domestic politics: the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and its implications for US-Russia relations.

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 21, 2015

Battle to End Pharma Corruption Makes Progress, Needs Push

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Josh Cohen</span>

As the ceasefire in the Donbas takes hold, Ukraine can now face its other existential threat: the endemic corruption that threatens the country’s long-term stability and prosperity. While graft within the Ukrainian government is widespread, corruption is perhaps most threatening in the area of government procurement. Public procurement corruption costs Kyiv billions, with as much […]

Ukraine