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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

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

Jan 9, 2025

Ukraine hopes robot army can counter Russia’s battlefield advantages

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >David Kirichenko</span>

As Ukrainian commanders prepare for a fourth year of Europe’s largest war since World War II, they are hoping their country’s growing arsenal of robotic systems can help counter Russia’s often overwhelming advantages in both manpower and firepower, writes David Kirichenko.


Conflict

Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Jan 7, 2025

Putin begins 2025 confident of victory as war of attrition takes toll on Ukraine

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

Donald Trump has vowed to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine but Vladimir Putin begins 2025 more confident of victory than ever and with little interest in a negotiated peace deal, writes Mykola Bielieskov.


Conflict

Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Jan 7, 2025

Putin’s peace plan is actually a call for Ukraine’s capitulation

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Serhii Kuzan</span>

Donald Trump has vowed to end Russia's war in Ukraine, but Vladimir Putin's proposed peace terms leave little room for doubt that the Kremlin dictator remains intent on erasing Ukrainian statehood entirely, writes Serhii Kuzan.


Conflict

Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Jan 2, 2025

Lithuania prioritizes defense spending amid growing Russian threat

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Agnia Grigas</span>

Lithuania's new government is planning to increase defense spending as the Baltic nation faces up to the growing threat posed by Putin's Russia amid uncertainty over the US role in European security, writes Agnia Grigas.


Conflict

Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Jan 2, 2025

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

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Nataliia Kushnerska</span>

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
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Joshua Stein</span>

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
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Stuart Jones</span>, <span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Katherine Spencer</span>

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

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
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Kateryna Odarchenko</span>

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

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

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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

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

Apr 20, 2015

The Achilles’ Heel of Ukraine’s Mighty Oligarchs

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

The Ukrainian government’s well-executed showdown in March 2015 to rein in the country’s wealthiest oligarch is the first of many battles with the oligarchs that lie ahead. In the battle with the oligarchs, President Petro Poroshenko—the owner of Roshen Confectionery Corporation and an oligarch himself—is uniquely positioned to fight. The President and his reform-minded parliament will […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 16, 2015

Ukrainian Fighter Pilot’s Case More About Politics, Less About Law, Says Attorney

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

When Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine captured a fighter pilot loyal to Kyiv in June 2014, they got more than they bargained for. Nearly a year later, Nadiya Savchenko is on trial in Russia, and at the center of an international imbroglio. “This isn’t an ordinary case,” Russian attorney Mark Feygin said at the Atlantic […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 16, 2015

Out of the Abyss: Anders Åslund Sees Hope for Ukrainian Economy

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Thomas O. Melia</span>

Ukraine: What Went Wrong and How to Fix It, the new book by Anders Åslund of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, presents so compelling an argument that—even before publication on April 17—it has already persuaded the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Western nations to adopt a $40 billion economic stabilization program for Ukraine. This […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 14, 2015

The Balkan Piece of the Putin Puzzle

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Stephen Blank</span>

While the Russian threat to Poland and the Baltic States has sparked justified anxiety, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s imperial adventure is just as much of a threat to the Balkans.  Moscow is putting on a full-court press—using energy exports, information warfare, trade, arms sales, and efforts to obtain military bases in Cyprus, Montenegro and Serbia—to […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

UkraineAlert

Apr 14, 2015

A View from Luhansk: Waiting for War to Return

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

Luhansk Oblast – Ukrainians are waiting for war to start again. Since a ceasefire agreement went into effect in February, the winter has been relatively quiet in Luhansk Oblast, marred only by sporadic rockets fired from the territory of the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic (LNR). In many respects, life appears oddly normal in the small […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 13, 2015

New Ukraine Disrupts Old Ukraine

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

There’s good reason for guarded optimism in the new Ukraine. President Petro Poroshenko and the parliament brought the country’s most powerful oligarch to heel in March 2015 and the justice department has set its sights on the richest oligarchs.

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 9, 2015

Poroshenko Goes Hunting for Oligarchs

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

Ukraine won an important battle in the war against the oligarchs with the removal of Dnipropetrovsk Governor Ihor Kolomoyskyi last week. But Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and the Ukrainian parliament are just getting started.  On April 7 the government challenged billionaire Rinat Akhmetov’s grip on energy companies. Some parliamentarians are pushing to curb the power […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 7, 2015

Will Sanctions on Russia, Weapons for Ukrainians Keep Putin at Bay?

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Ashish Kumar Sen</span>

Former Putin advisor says they will not, advocates stronger response Western sanctions on Russia are not working and a proposal to provide defensive weapons to Ukrainian security forces will not deter the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine, according to Andrei Illarionov, a former advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin. “For those few people who are there […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 7, 2015

Putin’s Chilling Message to the West

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

Vladimir Putin’s 10-day disappearance shortly after the murder of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov and his triumphal reappearance after the broadcast of a 150-minute documentary on state television, suggest a more erratic—and aggressive—policy course in Russia. Here’s why. After Putin’s disappearance on March 5, the Russian media and the blogosphere dealt with little else.  However, the […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 2, 2015

The IMF’s Very Tough Love for Ukraine

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

As Kyiv Slashes Spending, the Economy’s Real Shrinkage This Year May Be 10, Not 6, Percent The International Monetary Fund last month threw what looks like a much-improved financial lifeline to Ukraine—and indeed, the new loan program is welcome help for a desperate need. But a check on the math of one prominent IMF realist […]

Ukraine
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