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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 Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

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 Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

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 Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

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 Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

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 Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

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 Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

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

Oct 31, 2014

Ukraine Gas Deal May Show That the West’s Sanctions on Russia Are Working

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >James Rupert</span>

The gas supply deal signed in Brussels yesterday among Russia, Ukraine and the European Union “is perhaps the clearest indication yet that sanctions imposed on Russia are working in terms of changing Russia’s behavior,” writes Timothy Ash, an economist who directs emerging markets strategy at Standard Bank in London.

Eastern Europe Energy & Environment

UkraineAlert

Oct 30, 2014

Russian-Backed ‘People’s Republics’ in Ukraine Prepare Elections for Sunday

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >James Rupert</span>

Donetsk, Lugansk Vote for ‘Parliaments’ Violates Truce and Raises Risks, Say Analysts The Russian-backed, miniature, “people’s republics” declared in southeastern Ukraine are preparing to elect parliaments and heads of state on Sunday, a step backed by Moscow to consolidate their self-declared statehood. Those elections promise to further undermine the already wobbly political deal that underpins […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 27, 2014

Today’s Corruption Video: Which Ukrainian Officials Own These Palaces?

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

The former director and deputy director of Ukraine’s state-owned gas company, Naftogaz, will have been waiting today to hear if they are elected to Ukraine’s parliament, not least because winning seats would offer them immunity from prosecution. Prosecution for what?

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Oct 27, 2014

Ukraine Counts Its Votes: Here Is What They Mean

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

Official Tallies Are Tracking With Polls Predicting a Strong, Pro-Europe and Reformist Coalition With 71 percent of Ukraine’s ballots counted today, the official results are broadly tracking the recent days’ polls, suggesting that Ukraine’s next government will be a pro-European coalition built across several political parties, with President Petro Poroshenko likely to rely on his […]

Eastern Europe Elections

UkraineAlert

Oct 27, 2014

Ukrainians Vote for a European Future and for Reform

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

Parliament Election is a Defeat for Russia’s Putin: How Will He Respond? If Sunday’s exit poll accurately depicts Ukraine’s parliamentary vote, the outcome is a stunning victory for reform and a pro-European orientation—and a big defeat for Russian President Vladimir Putin. It immediately raises the question whether Putin will respond with a new aggressive move […]

Eastern Europe Elections

UkraineAlert

Oct 24, 2014

George Soros on Ukraine: Europe Is Sleeping Through Its Decisive Fight

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

Billionaire investment magnate and pro-democracy philanthropist George Soros has sounded what he says is a wake-up call to Europe (and to the United States) over a failure to see that it is “facing a challenge from Russia to its very existence.” You can read here his full 3,200-word essay for the New York Review of […]

European Union International Organizations

UkraineAlert

Oct 24, 2014

A Night in War-Shattered Lugansk: Russian Soldiers Share Vodka with Western Journalists

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >James Rupert</span>

‘You Didn’t See Us Here,’ Officer Admonishes, as Moscow Keeps Military Options in Ukraine As Ukrainians elect a parliament this weekend, new evidence pops up of Russia’s military role in their country: Western journalists this week found destroyed Russian tanks in Donetsk—and very live (if somewhat drunk) Russian soldiers happy to socialize at one of […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 20, 2014

Ukraine Prepares to Elect Its Most Pro-European Parliament in History

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

Poroshenko’s Party Leads; Yatsenyuk Improves Chance of Remaining Prime Minister On Sunday, Ukrainians will elect their first parliament since the Maidan revolution and the Russian invasions of Crimea and Donbas. Kyiv-based political analyst Brian Mefford, now a nonresident senior fellow of the Atlantic Council, analyzes Ukrainian politics and elections on his website’s blog. Mefford’s analysis […]

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

UkraineAlert

Oct 17, 2014

Yanukovych Birthday Video Reflects What Is Angering Ukrainians Now

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >James Rupert</span>

Kyiv Says It Fires 39 Officials as Voters Show Frustration Over Continued Corruption Eight months after Ukrainians forced the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych, they will elect a parliament amid rising public anger over the persistence of government corruption under the still-new regime of President Petro Poroshenko. Public discussion about how many new leaders are […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Oct 16, 2014

Putin’s Balkan Gambit

By <span class="gta-embed--tax--expert gta-post-embed--tax--expert" >Damon Wilson</span>

Buoyed by Successes in Europe’s East, Russia’s Leader Turns His Gaze to Serbia and Its Neighbors Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine aims to deny that nation a European future, partly by closing the door permanently to membership in NATO or the European Union. Putin’s aims, however, are not limited to extending a Russian […]

Russia The Balkans
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