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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

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Apr 26, 2023

Xi calls Zelenskyy but doubts remain over China’s peacemaker credentials

By Peter Dickinson

China’s Xi Jinping and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke for over an hour by phone on April 26 in what was the first conversation between the two leaders since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began more than fourteen months ago.

China
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 25, 2023

Putin’s dreams of a new Russian Empire are unraveling in Ukraine

By Mark Temnycky

Putin saw the invasion of Ukraine as a key step toward rebuilding the Russian Empire. Instead, it has forced countries across the former Soviet Union to distance themselves from the Kremlin, writes Mark Temnycky.

Central Asia
Civil Society

UkraineAlert

Apr 25, 2023

Russia’s invasion highlights the need to invest more in Ukrainian studies

By Oleksandra Gaidai

The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has highlighted the need for greater international investment into Ukrainian studies but has also created huge challenges for Ukrainian academia, writes Oleksandra Gaidai.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 20, 2023

There can be no lasting peace with Russia until Ukraine liberates Crimea

By Mariia Zolkina

Some skeptics question the feasibility and wisdom of a military campaign to de-occupy Crimea, but no lasting peace with Putin’s Russia will be possible until the Ukrainian peninsula is liberated, argues Mariia Zolkina.

Conflict
Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Apr 20, 2023

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is also being fought in cyberspace

By Vera Mironova

While the war in Ukraine often resembles the trench warfare of the twentieth century, the battle for cyber dominance is highly innovative and offers insights into the future of international aggression, writes Vera Mironova.

Conflict
Cybersecurity

UkraineAlert

Apr 18, 2023

Russia’s Ukraine invasion is the latest stage in the unfinished Soviet collapse

By Richard Cashman

Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is best understood as the latest stage in the unfinished collapse of the Soviet Union and as part of Russia’s historic retreat from empire, argues Richard Cashman.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 18, 2023

Vladimir Kara-Murza’s 25-year sentence is a verdict against all Russians

By Arseniy Yatsenyuk

Vladimir Kara-Murza’s 25-year prison sentence for speaking the truth about the invasion of Ukraine is a major milestone in modern Russia’s descent into Stalinism, says former Ukrainian PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

Apr 14, 2023

Ukrainian victory “could help ensure Europe’s future energy security”

By Diane Francis

Ukraine has massive potential to increase domestic energy production and could eventually replace Russian energy exports to the European Union in the post-war era, says Naftogaz CEO Oleksiy Chernyshov.

Conflict
European Union

UkraineAlert

Apr 13, 2023

Putin cancels Victory Day parades as Ukraine invasion continues to unravel

By Peter Dickinson

The cancellation of Victory Day parades in multiple Russian regional capitals is a blow to Putin’s personal prestige that exposes the grim reality behind Moscow’s upbeat propaganda portrayals of the faltering Ukraine invasion, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Apr 12, 2023

Poland and Ukraine: The emerging alliance that could reshape Europe

By Taras Kuzio

Poland’s leading role in the European response to Russia’s Ukraine invasion is fueling talk of a eastward shift in Europe’s geopolitical center of gravity with the Polish-Ukrainian alliance set to become increasingly influential.

Conflict
Defense Industry

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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.

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UkraineAlert

May 30, 2024

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

By Hanna Hopko, Andrius Kubilius

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 Peter Dickinson

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 Aura Sabadus

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 Maria Avdeeva

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

UkraineAlert

May 23, 2024

Pride of Ukraine: Oleksandr Usyk’s historic victory boosts wartime morale

By Joshua Stein

Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk's remarkable achievement in unifying the heavyweight division for the first time this century has provided war-torn Ukraine with a welcome morale boost, writes Joshua Stein.

Conflict
Resilience & Society

UkraineAlert

May 23, 2024

Ukraine faces long-term mental health challenges among veteran community

By Claire Szewczyk

Far away from the front lines of the country’s ongoing war with Russia, growing numbers of Ukrainian veterans are facing up to the psychological aftermath of their military service, writes Claire Szewczyk.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

May 23, 2024

President Zelenskyy’s term is over but he’s still a legitimate wartime leader

By Elena Davlikanova

Kremlin attempts to question the legitimacy of Ukraine's President Zelenskyy due to the end of his official term in office ignore the obvious impossibility of holding elections amid Europe's biggest invasion since World War II, writes Elena Davlikanova.

Civil Society
Conflict

UkraineAlert

May 21, 2024

Ukraine’s Western allies should fear Russian victory not Russian defeat

By Peter Dickinson

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says his country's allies fear the potential geopolitical consequences of Russian defeat, but Russian victory is a far more realistic and alarming prospect, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

May 21, 2024

Ukraine’s soccer stars aim for Euro 2024 glory amid Russian invasion

By Mark Temnycky

The Ukrainian national soccer team heads to Euro 2024 in Germany this summer hoping to provide their war-weary compatriots with a much-needed morale boost, writes Mark Temnycky.

Conflict
Freedom and Prosperity

UkraineAlert

May 16, 2024

Anger and defiance in Kharkiv as advancing Russian troops draw closer

By Maria Avdeeva

The mood in Kharkiv is a mix of anger, anxiety, and defiance as Ukraine's second city prepares to defend itself against a new Russian offensive, writes Maria Avdeeva.

Conflict
Drones