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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 Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

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 Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

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 Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

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

Jun 12, 2024

Ukraine is making the Russian occupation of Crimea untenable

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Olivia Yanchik</span>

Ukraine's growing air strike capabilities are decimating Russian air defenses in Crimea and making the occupation of the peninsula increasingly untenable, writes Olivia Yanchik.


Conflict

Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jun 11, 2024

Victory in Ukraine would dramatically strengthen Putin’s war machine

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

Victory in Ukraine would greatly strengthen Russia militarily, economically, and strategically, while severely weakening the West. Faced with such uniquely favorable circumstances, it is fanciful to suggest a triumphant Putin would simply stop, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict

Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Jun 11, 2024

The terrible cost of Russia’s war is being felt far beyond the battlefield

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

From mental health and population decline to the economy and education, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has had a profoundly negative impact on Ukrainian society that will be felt for generations to come, writes Mark Temnycky.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 6, 2024

Allies stand with Ukraine as Russian threat looms over D-Day anniversary

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

Putin has tried to justify his invasion of Ukraine by portraying Ukrainians as Nazis. But as this week's D-Day anniversary made clear, it is Putin himself who is seen as the greatest single threat to peace in Europe since Adolf Hitler, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict

Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jun 6, 2024

Russia is winning the energy war and plunging Ukraine into darkness

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Elena Davlikanova</span>

Electricity blackouts are the new normal in Ukraine as the country struggles to cope with the consequences of a devastating Russian air offensive that has destroyed around half of Ukraine’s wartime power-generating capacity since the start of 2024, writes Elena Davlikanova.


Conflict

Geopolitics & Energy Security


UkraineAlert

Jun 4, 2024

Vladimir Putin just tacitly admitted Crimea is not really part of Russia

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

Russia claims to have annexed five Ukrainian provinces but refuses to extend security red lines to these regions. This highlights the pragmatic political realities behind Putin's talk of historic conquests, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict

Disinformation


UkraineAlert

May 30, 2024

If the West wants a sustainable peace it must commit to Ukrainian victory

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Hanna Hopko, Andrius Kubilius</span>

Since 2022, Western policies of escalation management have failed to appease Putin and have only emboldened the Kremlin. If the West wants peace, it must help Ukraine win, write Hanna Hopko and Andrius Kubilius.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

May 28, 2024

‘The time has come’: Calls grow to allow Ukrainian strikes inside Russia

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

Pressure is building for the US and other NATO allies to lift restrictions on the use of Western weapons for Ukrainian strikes inside Russia, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict

Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

May 28, 2024

Only enhanced air defenses can save Ukraine from winter energy collapse

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Aura Sabadus</span>

Ukraine's power grid has been decimated in recent months by a major Russian bombing campaign. In order to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe this winter, the country urgently needs more air defenses, writes Aura Sabadus.


Conflict

European Union


UkraineAlert

May 27, 2024

Russia is bombing book publishers as Putin wages war on Ukrainian identity

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Maria Avdeeva</span>

Russia's recent targeted bombing of a major Ukrainian book publishing plant in Kharkiv is part of the Kremlin's wider war against Ukrainian national identity, writes Maria Avdeeva.


Civil Society

Conflict

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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 Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

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 Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

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 Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

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

Aug 12, 2015

Ukraine Crisis Is Not Only About Ukraine

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Andreas Umland</span>

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

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 <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Yuriy Didula</span>

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 <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Ruben Gzirian</span>

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

UkraineAlert

Aug 10, 2015

Making Ukraine the Breadbasket of Europe Again

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Oksana Khomei </span>

Ukraine’s system of agricultural production is paternalistic, dating back to the Soviet era, when bureaucrats constantly intruded into the production process. Such a strategy may have suited the planned economy, but in Ukraine’s market economy it has only spawned widespread corruption, because authorities cannot inspect every farm and business in person. EU standards allow producers […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 5, 2015

Moscow’s Veto of MH17 Tribunal: A Blunder of Potentially Huge Proportions

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

On July 29, Russia vetoed a draft UN resolution seeking to set up a tribunal to prosecute those responsible for shooting down a Malaysia Airlines jumbo jet more than a year ago. By exercising its Security Council veto against the resolution, Moscow has lost control of the process, committing a possible error that may ultimately […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 4, 2015

Debunking Russia’s Narrative of Rampant Anti-Semitism in Ukraine Again

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Halya Coynash</span>

The Congress of National Communities of Ukraine’s latest reports on xenophobia in Ukraine have struck another blow to Moscow’s persistent attempts to present the country as a hotbed of anti-Semitism. The reports make no mention of the “pogroms” alleged by the Russian Foreign Ministry, nor do they back Russian President Vladimir Putin’s assertion of a […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 3, 2015

Retribution in the New Crimea

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Melinda Haring</span>

In March 2015, the Atlantic Council and Freedom House published a report by Crimean journalist Andrii Klymenko showing how Russia’s occupation and annexation of Crimea has unleashed an ongoing chain of human rights violations across the peninsula. Five days after release of the report—Human Rights Abuses in Russian-Occupied Crimea—Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) charged Klymenko […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Aug 3, 2015

How Oligarchs Have Ruined Ukraine’s Economy and How to Fix It

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Basil A. Kalymon and Oleh Havrylyshyn</span>

Ukraine finds itself in an economic crisis of massive proportions. In the past twelve months, its GDP has contracted by over 7.5 percent, the national deficit exceeds 10 percent, its currency has lost more than 50 percent of its value, its banks are insolvent and the national debt-to-GDP ratio has ballooned to more than 100 […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jul 31, 2015

Russia Threatens Ukrainian Pilot Nadiya Savchenko with 25-Year Jail Term

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Irena Chalupa</span>

Nadiya Savchenko, Ukraine’s most famous female military officer, has languished in a Moscow prison for more than a year since Moscow-backed separatists captured her in eastern Ukraine last June and smuggled across the border to Russia shackled, her head covered by a sack. Now her captors have moved her again—and again under the cover of […]

Russia Ukraine
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