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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

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on 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

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on 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

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on 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

Apr 11, 2024

Ukraine pleads for Patriot air defense systems as Russia destroys power grid

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

Officials in Kyiv are calling on partners to urgently supply Patriot systems as Russia capitalizes on Ukraine's weakening air defenses to methodically destroy the country's power grid, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict

Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Apr 11, 2024

Ukraine’s veterans can transform the country’s postwar political landscape

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

While the Russian invasion of Ukraine is still far from over, it already looks likely that Ukrainian military veterans will play a key role in their country's postwar politics, writes Kateryna Odarchenko.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Apr 9, 2024

Russian Orthodox Church declares “Holy War” against Ukraine and West

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

The Russian Orthodox Church has approved a remarkable new document that declares a holy war against Ukraine and the wider Western world, writes Brian Mefford.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Apr 9, 2024

Georgia launches new push to adopt Russian-style foreign agent law

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

Georgia’s ruling party has revived plans to pass legislation tightening restrictions on civil society, despite the fact that the same draft law sparked mass protests just one year ago, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.


Civil Society

Conflict


UkraineAlert

Apr 7, 2024

Western weakness in Ukraine could provoke a far bigger war with Russia

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Oleksiy Goncharenko</span>

Western leaders must decide whether they would rather arm Ukraine for victory today or fight a resurgent and emboldened Russia tomorrow, writes Oleksiy Goncharenko.


Conflict

Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Apr 3, 2024

Ukraine’s Belarusian volunteers create headaches for Putin ally Lukashenka

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Alesia Rudnik</span>

Thousands of Belarusians are currently fighting for Ukraine and make no secret of their ambitions to eventually topple pro-Kremlin Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka, writes Alesia Rudnik.


Belarus

Civil Society


UkraineAlert

Apr 3, 2024

Ukraine’s allies divided over drone campaign targeting Russian refineries

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Giorgi Revishvili</span>

Ukraine's expanding campaign of drone strikes on Russian refineries has inflicted significant damage on Putin’s oil and gas industry while also revealing divisions among Ukraine’s allies, writes Giorgi Revishvili.


Conflict

Drones


UkraineAlert

Apr 2, 2024

Putin is weaponizing corruption to weaken Europe from within

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert" >Francis Shin</span>

Recent revelations regarding a Kremlin influence operation in the heart of the EU have highlighted Europe's continued vulnerability to Russian weaponized corruption, writes Francis Shin.


Conflict

Corruption


UkraineAlert

Mar 31, 2024

Russia’s new air offensive leaves Ukraine facing humanitarian disaster

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

Unless Ukraine's Western partners urgently enhance the country's air defenses, Russia's new air offensive will leave millions of Ukrainians without access to electricity, water, and heating, writes Aura Sabadus.


Conflict

Geopolitics & Energy Security


UkraineAlert

Mar 31, 2024

Ukraine urgently needs air defenses as Russia decimates power grid

By
<span class="gta-embed–tax–expert gta-post-embed–tax–expert">Suriya Evans-Pritchard Jayanti</span>

A new Russian air offensive has destroyed much of Ukraine's civilian energy infrastructure in a matter of days and threatens to spark a humanitarian catastrophe if Ukraine does not urgently receive enhanced air defenses, writes Suriya Evans-Pritchard Jayanti.


Conflict

Defense Technologies

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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

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on 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

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on 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

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on 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

Testimony

Mar 6, 2015

US and Allies Risk War with Russia by a ‘Hesitancy on Ukraine’

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >New Atlanticist</span>

Wilson: Only the US Can Lead in Defending Europe Against Putin’s Rising Ambition The United States and its allies must confront the aggressive actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin because failing to do so will escalate his ambitions—perhaps to the point of forcing a war with NATO, the Atlantic Council’s Damon Wilson told the US […]

Europe & Eurasia NATO

UkraineAlert

Mar 5, 2015

Before Russia’s Next Offensive, Obama Should Take the Lead

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >New Atlanticist</span>

Burns: Give Arms to Ukraine, More NATO Cover to Baltics—and Leadership for Europe President Barack Obama has given space for Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel to lead recently in the Western response to Russia’s war on Ukraine. But it’s now time for the US president to take the reins back, writes former Undersecretary of State Nicholas […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 5, 2015

The Myth of the West’s Threat to Russia

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

Did NATO Provoke a War By Trying to ‘Take’ Ukraine From Russia? Much Western thinking about the causes of the Russo-Ukrainian War is rooted in a myth. It posits that the West—or, more specifically, NATO—attempted to wrest Ukraine from Russia’s sphere of influence, thereby forcing Vladimir Putin to defend Russia’s legitimate strategic interests by going […]

Europe & Eurasia NATO

UkraineAlert

Mar 3, 2015

Europe Averts Winter Gas Cutoff for Now with Ukraine-Russia Deal

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" > New Atlanticist</span>

For Long-Term Security, EU Should Push Moscow to Obey Rules and Kyiv to Reform Gas Sector By brokering a March 2 interim gas deal between Ukraine and Russia, the European Union helped avert a wintertime cutoff of gas to Ukraine and other parts of Europe. Russia had threatened to halt supplies to Ukraine in the […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

UkraineAlert

Mar 3, 2015

To Secure Europe’s Energy, Build a Market and Integrate Ukraine

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Basil Kalymon and Adonis Yatchew</span>

Europe Should Press Moscow to Respect EU Rules—and Kyiv to End Gas Monopoly In recent days, Russia has once more threatened the security of Europe’s gas supplies by announcing that it will refuse to pipe gas through Ukraine and will require that a southern alternative be built through Turkey. The European gas supply system has […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

UkraineAlert

Mar 2, 2015

Is the IMF Bailout Enough for Ukraine?

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

MIT Economist Says Rescue Plan Is Too Small, May Need Adjustment An International Monetary Fund bailout for Ukraine underestimates the banking sector’s needs and is unrealistic about government expenditure on security and defense, according to Andrei Kirilenko, a Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Ukraine has secured a $40 billion bailout from the IMF […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 1, 2015

Nemtsov Assassination Is Rooted in Putin’s Authoritarianism

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

Passive Responses to Putin Darken the Future for Ukraine—and for Russia The professional killing of Boris Nemtsov February 27 confronts us with two facts that Western policymakers ignore at great cost in the Russia-Ukraine war. First, Mr. Putin’s war in Ukraine is potentially a great domestic political liability for him. Second, it is central to […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 25, 2015

The Flawed Minsk Peace Accord—And How to Use It

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Adrian Karatnycky</span>

Truce Buys Ukraine Time to Get a Little Real Help From Its Friends Ukraine and its allies hope this month’s cease-fire deal agreed with Russia and Russian-backed rebels brings relative calm to southeastern Ukraine. But the Minsk agreement is deeply flawed, and there is every chance it may yet unravel, even if it holds for […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 18, 2015

Ukraine’s Anti-Corruption Battle Slogs Ahead

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Olena Tregub</span>

New Prosecutor Briefly Arrests an Oligarch; Anti-Corruption Bureau Seeks a Director The Ukrainian campaign to actually begin cleaning up Europe’s most corrupt government and economy is progressing more slowly than many Ukrainians have demanded. But the past week showed some movement in two critical government agencies: the prosecutor general’s office and the nascent National Anti-Corruption […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Feb 18, 2015

Amid the ‘Cease-Fire,’ Russian Forces Win a Battle in Ukraine

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >New Atlanticist</span>

Kyiv Forced into New Retreat; US, Europe Must Increase Support, Atlantic Council Analysts Say At midday February 18, three-and-a-half days beyond the designated hour for a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, fighting was continuing in the strategic city of Debaltseve, where Russian forces continue to pound a nearly surrounded Ukrainian contingent that may still number in […]

Eastern Europe Russia
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