Poland’s newly appointed Prime Minister Donald Tusk has vowed to rally Western support for Ukraine as it continues to defend itself against Russia’s ongoing invasion. Addressing the Polish parliament on December 12 following his appointment, Tusk said he would “loudly and decisively demand the full mobilization of the free world, the Western world, to help
FORWARD DEFENSE STRATEGY PAPER LAUNCH Download PDF The United States faces an increasingly challenging international security environment with ongoing conflicts in Europe and the Middle East. Tensions are also rising across the Taiwan Strait. With Xi Jinping charging his military to give him the ability to invade Taiwan by 2027, US and allied defense strategists
Speaking at his annual Valdai meeting in October 2023, Vladimir Putin confidently declared that Ukrainian Black Sea port Odesa is “certainly a Russian city.” The Kremlin dictator has long been notorious for such casual denials of Ukrainian statehood, but on this occasion he could not have been more mistaken. While Odesa has a rich legacy
On the very first day of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, a Russian warship approached the tiny Ukrainian garrison on Snake Island with an ultimatum: “Lay down your arms and surrender, or you will be bombed.” Although hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned, the handful of Ukrainian troops stationed on the Black Sea island had no
The current fighting season is still far from over in Ukraine, but it is already clear that the war unleashed by Vladimir Putin in February 2022 will continue into the coming year. Developments on the Ukrainian battlefield in 2024 will likely depend on a number of factors including geopolitical considerations, election cycles, weapons deliveries, and
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s October 10 visit to Bucharest took place at a critical moment for cooperation between Ukraine and Romania. It came following months of increasingly elevated diplomatic engagement centered around alternative transportation corridors for Ukrainian grain. This intensifying dialogue highlights the growing importance of Ukraine’s Danube ports in the war against Putin’s Russia.
Russia has reportedly withdrawn most of its Black Sea Fleet from occupied Crimea in recent weeks following a series of successful Ukrainian attacks. The retreat of the Russian fleet is a serious setback for Vladimir Putin’s ongoing invasion and the latest indication that Ukraine is winning the Battle of the Black Sea. Satellite footage from
More than three months since the start of Ukraine’s much-hyped counteroffensive, Ukrainian forces have only managed to liberate a tiny portion of the territory currently under Russian occupation. However, the success or failure of the campaign cannot be measured in square kilometers alone. Beyond the front lines, the Ukrainian military is steadily reducing Russia’s ability
For months, Ukraine has been asking the United States to supply long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS). In early September, a flurry of media reports emerged suggesting that the Biden Administration may now be about to give the green light for the long-range missiles. If confirmed, this would be the latest in a series of
As Russia continues its assault on Ukraine, the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab) is keeping a close eye on Russia’s movements across the military, cyber, and information domains. With more than seven years of experience monitoring the situation in Ukraine—as well as Russia’s use of propaganda and disinformation to undermine the United States, NATO,
