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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

Nov 3, 2026

Europe must weigh rising Ukraine costs against higher price of Russian victory

By Peter Dickinson

If Russia succeeds in overrunning an underfunded and exhausted Ukraine, the consequences for Europe will be catastrophic and the price tag of stopping an emboldened Putin will dwarf the current cost of supporting Kyiv, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Nov 3, 2026

A strong defense industry may be Ukraine’s best security guarantee

By Leonid Baratz

Ukrainians have little faith in written guarantees and are well aware that nobody is going to fight Russia on their behalf. Instead, their most realistic security guarantee is a strong Ukrainian military backed by a powerful domestic defense industry, writes Leonid Baratz.

Conflict Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

Oct 29, 2026

Ukraine’s drone defenses debunk the myth of inevitable Russian victory

By Mykola Bielieskov

Ukraine’s emergence since 2022 as a drone superpower has made international headlines, but the role of drone-based air defenses on the battlefield has not yet received as much attention as it arguably deserves, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

Conflict Defense Industry

UkraineAlert

Oct 29, 2026

Putin’s quest to reclaim ‘historical Russian lands’ is a recipe for endless war

By Peter Dickinson

Russian President Vladimir Putin's insistence that Ukraine is "historically Russian land" reveals the extent of his imperial ambitions and represents a recipe for endless war, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Oct 27, 2026

UN report: Russian attacks on Ukraine’s power grid are a ‘crime against humanity’

By Kateryna Odarchenko

Russia’s bombardment of Ukraine’s civilian power grid qualifies as a crime against humanity, according to a new report by the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, writes Kateryna Odarchenko.

Conflict Drones

UkraineAlert

Oct 27, 2026

European infrastructure is vulnerable as Putin escalates Russia’s hybrid war

By Maksym Beznosiuk

Putin is currently looking to exploit Europe’s vulnerabilities as he seeks ways to isolate Ukraine and cut off Kyiv’s European aid lifeline. Civilian infrastructure may be one of the continent’s weakest links, writes Maksym Beznosiuk.

Conflict Critical Infrastructure Policy

UkraineAlert

Oct 21, 2026

Ukrainians are not fighting for Zelenskyy. They are fighting for national survival.

By Peter Dickinson

Trump and Putin both seem to think that removing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would set the stage for a Kremlin-friendly peace deal, but most Ukrainians see the war as a fight for national survival that does not depend on any one man, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Education

UkraineAlert

Oct 21, 2026

Moldova’s fight against Kremlin interference faces Gagauzia election test

By Laurențiu Pleșca, Will Kingston-Cox

Moldova’s democratic resilience faces a revealing litmus test on November 15, when autonomous Gagauzia elects a new governor and People’s Assembly amid concerns over Kremlin interference, write Laurențiu Pleșca and Will Kingston-Cox.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Oct 21, 2026

Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians may have a domestic dimension

By Syrus Solo Jin, Anton Ponomarenko

Russia's escalating bombing campaign against civilian targets across Ukraine aims to make much of the country unlivable while also serving a propaganda purpose for the Kremlin on the home front, write Syrus Solo Jin and Anton Ponomarenko.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Oct 16, 2026

Ukrainian drone strikes highlight the vulnerability of Russia’s data centers

By Leonid Baratz

The idea of Ukrainian drones silencing Kremlin bots clearly caught the world’s imagination, but the real story behind Ukraine’s recent drone strikes on Russia’s mega data centers is one of strategic vulnerability, writes Leonid Baratz.

Conflict Defense Policy

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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

Jul 1, 2022

With all eyes on Ukraine, Vladimir Putin targets domestic dissidents

By Doug Klain

While international attention focuses on Vladimir Putin’s genocidal war in Ukraine, the Russian government is accelerating its brutal crackdown on any remaining expressions of anti-regime dissent on the domestic front.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 30, 2022

Goodwill gestures and de-Nazification: Decoding Putin’s Ukraine War lexicon

By Peter Dickinson

From “goodwill gestures” to “de-Nazification” and “reclaiming Russian lands,” the Atlantic Council's Peter Dickinson decodes some of the key phrases from the lexicon of Putin’s Ukraine War into plain English.

Central Asia Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 29, 2022

Vladimir Putin’s Ukrainian genocide is proceeding in plain view

By Taras Kuzio

Western policymakers should be in no doubt that the many different Russian war crimes currently taking place in Ukraine are all part of a coherent plan developed by Vladimir Putin to commit genocide.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 28, 2022

Fear of confronting Putin will lead to Russian victory in Ukraine

By Richard D. Hooker, Jr.

So far, the war in Ukraine has taught Vladimir Putin that NATO and the EU will go to great lengths to avoid confronting him. This has grave consequences for Ukraine itself and for the wider international community.

Conflict European Union

UkraineAlert

Jun 27, 2022

Odesa rejects Russia: Putin’s Ukraine War turns old allies into bitter enemies

By Oleksiy Goncharenko

Putin has long claimed to be the champion of pro-Russian Ukrainians. However, the Ukrainian regions most closely associated with pro-Kremlin sentiment have also been hardest hit by the current invasion.

Conflict Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Jun 24, 2022

Ukraine edges closer to EU dream despite horrors of Putin’s war

By Peter Dickinson

Ukraine has this week secured official EU candidate status as the country seeks to advance its European integration ambitions while also defending itself against an ongoing Russian invasion.

Conflict Democratic Transitions

UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2022

What Ukrainians need most

By Melinda Haring

Aid efforts in support of Ukrainians are more necessary than ever but as the Russian invasion enters its fifth month there are worrying signs that international attention is now beginning to fade.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 21, 2022

“Historic victory for women’s rights”: Ukraine ratifies Istanbul Convention

By Iryna Slavinska

Ukraine has this week ratified the Istanbul Convention in a major step toward greater protections against domestic and gender-based violence as the country seeks to make further progress in its European integration bid.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 21, 2022

What would EU candidate status mean for Ukraine?

By Peter Dickinson

Ukrainians expect the country to be granted official EU candidate nation status at this week's summit of European leaders but what would this mean for Ukraine's broader ambitions for greater Euro-Atlantic integration?

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Jun 20, 2022

Time for EU leaders to honor Ukraine’s long fight for a European future

By Mark Temnycky

Ukraine hopes to receive official EU candidate nation status this week as the country's long struggle for a European future enters a new phase while Ukrainian forces continue to defend against Russian invasion.

Conflict Democratic Transitions