UkraineAlert

UkraineAlert

UkraineAlert is a comprehensive online publication that provides regular news and analysis on developments in Ukraine’s politics, economy, civil society, and culture. UkraineAlert sources analysis and commentary from a wide-array of thought-leaders, politicians, experts, and activists from Ukraine and the global community. UkraineAlert has become a major publication in Ukraine’s news landscape and has established itself not only through its quality of content but also significant partnerships with English, Ukrainian, and Russian-language media through the country.

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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

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

UkraineAlert
Jan 20, 2026

Ukraine’s best security guarantee is the ability to strike back inside Russia

By
Serhii Kuzan

With Kyiv’s Western allies unlikely to risk war with Russia, Ukraine’s most realistic security guarantee remains a strong military coupled with the ability to strike targets deep inside Russia, writes Serhii Kuzan.

Conflict
Defense Policy

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

UkraineAlert
Jan 15, 2026

Veterans can shape the future of Ukrainian democracy

By
Vasyl Sehin

The participation of military veterans in Ukraine’s political life has the potential to dramatically strengthen Ukrainian democracy and safeguard the country’s historic transition from centuries of Russian autocracy, writes Vasyl Sehin.

Conflict
Democratic Transitions

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

UkraineAlert
Jan 8, 2026

Ukraine’s robot army will be crucial in 2026 but drones can’t replace infantry

By
David Kirichenko

Ukraine’s growing robot army of land drones will play a vital role in the country’s defense during 2026, but they are not wonder weapons and cannot serve as a miracle cure for Kyiv’s manpower shortages, writes David Kirichenko.

Artificial Intelligence
Conflict

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2021

Escalating Belarus border crisis could pose a security threat to Ukraine

By
Bohdan Nahaylo

The escalating migrant crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border poses a potential threat to Ukraine, which shares a long and vulnerable 1,000 km border with Belarus and could serve as an alternative route into the EU.


Belarus

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2021

New US-Ukraine Charter underlines American commitment to Ukrainian security

By
Anders Åslund

The new US-Ukraine Charter on Strategic Partnership adopted on November 10 underlines American support for Ukrainian security and US concerns over the possibility of further Russian aggression.


Disinformation

Non-Traditional Threats


UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2021

Ukraine’s Anti-Oligarch Law: President Zelenskyy’s populist power grab?

By
Kira Rudik

Ukraine's anti-oligarch law is being trumpeted by President Zelenskyy's supporters as a move to reduce the influence of Ukraine’s oligarch elite. However, it looks more like a populist ploy to strengthen presidential powers, writes Holos leader Kira Rudik.


Corruption

Media


UkraineAlert

Nov 11, 2021

Time to rediscover eastern Ukraine’s surprisingly cosmopolitan past

By
Peter Dickinson

Moscow has long cultivated the myth of eastern Ukraine as an indivisible part of Russia’s ancestral heartlands but in reality the region has a surprisingly cosmopolitan past that makes a mockery of Kremlin propaganda claims.


Conflict

Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2021

Nord Stream 2: Germany must listen to Ukrainian security concerns

By
Olga Bielkova

Ukraine has requested a role in the German process to certify Nord Stream 2 amid fears in Kyiv that the pipeline could pave the wave for an escalation in ongoing Russian military aggression against Ukraine.


Conflict

Energy Markets & Governance


UkraineAlert

Nov 8, 2021

De-oligarchization of Ukraine is President Zelenskyy’s top priority

By
Andriy Yermak

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's anti-oligarch agenda holds the key to Ukraine's reform ambitions and is vital for the country's future national security, argues presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak.


Corruption

Democratic Transitions


UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2021

Ukraine’s anti-oligarch law could make President Zelenskyy too powerful

By
David Clark

President Zelenskyy has trumpeted the country's new anti-oligarch law as a meaningful step towards curbing the power of Ukraine's oligarch class, but critics fear it may actually make Zelenskyy himself too powerful.


Corruption

Democratic Transitions


UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2021

Disarming Putin’s energy weapon: Ukraine must connect to EU grid

By
Anders Åslund

With Vladimir Putin seeking to restrict energy supplies to Ukraine, it is increasingly clear that Kyiv must connect to the European electricity grid in order to reduce its vulnerability to Kremlin blackmail tactics.


Conflict

Energy & Environment


UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2021

Ukraine faces energy crisis as Putin weaponizes gas and coal supplies

By
Aura Sabadus

As the winter season draws closer, Ukraine faces a looming energy crisis on multiple fronts which could lead to domestic political instability and deepen the country’s dependence on Vladimir Putin's Russia.


Conflict

Energy & Environment


UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2021

Ukraine MPs fight back against fake Covid vaccination certificates

By
Oleksandra Ustinova

As Ukraine grapples with a mounting Covid-19 death toll and low vaccination rates, the country's MPs aim to adopt tougher regulations targeting the thriving Ukrainian black market for fake vaccination certificates.


Coronavirus

Corruption

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spotlight

Resilience in the face of adversity

Ukraine’s transformation

Ukraine has moved tentatively toward an open society and market economy since independence. The country has held several democratic elections and made halting progress in addressing corruption and state control in its economy. Since the 2014 Maidan Revolution, Ukraine has undertaken significant governance and economic reform and moved decisively toward a Europe-Atlantic foreign policy. Since 2022, Ukraine has resiliently continued to advance some reforms despite fighting for its very existence against the full-scale Russian invasion.

Learn more about Ukraine

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

UkraineAlert
Dec 5, 2024

Ukraine’s entrepreneurial class can drive the country’s economic recovery

The Ukrainian SME sector has demonstrated remarkable wartime resilience and is poised to be at the forefront of efforts to create a modern, innovative, postwar economy, writes Anton Waschuk.

Read More

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

UkraineAlert
Oct 1, 2024

Ukraine needs international investors to maintain defense tech momentum

By
Mykhailo Fedorov

Ukraine’s rapidly expanding defense tech sector can play a game-changing role in the war against Russia but Ukrainian companies need international investment, writes Ukraine’s Minister for Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.

Artificial Intelligence
Conflict

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

UkraineAlert
Jun 13, 2024

Ukraine officially embraces English as historic westward pivot continues

By
Oleksiy Goncharenko

By officially embracing English, Ukrainians aim to support their country’s historic pivot away from Moscow and return to the European community of nations, writes Oleksiy Goncharenko.

Civil Society
Conflict

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 9, 2015

Ukraine Needs Responsible Public Finances Now

By Anders Åslund

With increasing surprise, I follow the Ukrainian discussion about public finances. Strangely, some prominent Ukrainians seem to think that taxes and public expenditures have no relationship to one another, arguing that public expenditures should be increased and taxes should be cut. But that is called populism, the disease Ukraine has suffered from since its independence […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2015

Justice Sector Is Central Battlefield in Struggle Between Old Ukraine and New Ukraine

By Geoffrey R. Pyatt

Editor’s note: US Ambassador Geoffrey R. Pyatt gave remarks at the “Conference on Legal and Governance Reform,” sponsored by the US-Ukraine Business Council and Kyiv School of Economics on October 30, 2015 in Kyiv. Pyatt’s remarks have been shortened below. The full version is available here. What a difference a year makes. When we gathered […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2015

Putin’s Victories in Syria

By Stephen Blank

To the great British military analyst Basil Liddell-Hart, it was axiomatic that the purpose of war was a better peace. In other words, for military operations to be successful, they must be correlated with political outcomes and strategic gains. Unfortunately, the idea that the United States can successfully employ military power to achieve clear political […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2015

New Film Captures Ukraine’s 91-Day Fight for Freedom

By Diane Francis

History is mostly curated and told years or even centuries later by persons not directly involved. But the twentieth century video camera brought us history on the run, produced by journalists, and now the cell phone records events and stories told by the participants themselves in real time. The finest example of this New History […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2015

Why Poroshenko’s Support for Shokin Is Dangerous

By Josh Cohen

On October 31, protesters parked ninety-three cars outside the private residence of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to demand that he fire Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin. Protesters held signs demanding change and a few held placards supporting the President. The atmosphere was reminiscent of the Euromaidan protests, but on a much smaller scale. Elected on a […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2015

Poroshenko Not Serious About Fighting Corruption, Says Anticorruption Reformer

By Melinda Haring

Bogdan Yakymiuk radiates optimism. But despite his quick smile, the thirty-seven-year old reformer is deadly serious when it comes to corruption. “Over 30 percent of our yearly budget is being stolen one way or another through corruption,” Yakymiuk said in an October 27 interview in Washington.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 4, 2015

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

By Larry Luxner

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 John E. Herbst

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 Anders Åslund

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 Alexander Motyl

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
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