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This week on Hold Your Fire! Richard Atwood, Comfort Ero and Crisis Group’s Europe & Central Asia director Olga Oliker talk about the war in Ukraine. They discuss what’s happening on the ground, reactions around the world and what lies ahead as fighting reaches Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

Russia’s assault on Ukraine threatens to become the largest European conflict in decades. A vigorous but judicious Western and global response is critical to limit the damage.

This week on Hold Your Fire!, Richard Atwood, Comfort Ero and Olga Oliker, Crisis Group’s Europe/Central Asia director, talk about the Ukraine crisis. They discuss latest developments on the border, the uptick of violence along front lines in Eastern Ukraine and whether recent diplomatic efforts can avert a Russian escalation.

In this short interview, Crisis Group's ECA Director Olga Oliker explains why she thinks Russia's building up of forces near Ukraine may not be a bluff, but rather the result of Moscow misunderstanding of Ukraine.

Russia’s ongoing troop build-up near Ukraine has spurred over a month of intense diplomacy as well as new U.S. military deployments to eastern Europe. In this Q&A, Crisis Group experts discuss whether talks can avert war and what happens if they fail.

Crisis Group’s Watch List identifies ten countries or regions at risk of deadly conflict or escalation thereof in 2022. In these places, early action, driven or supported by the EU and its member states, could enhance prospects for peace and stability.

Originally published in Just Security.

Stalled Ukraine-Russia peace talks and a recent Russian buildup of troops near the Ukrainian border are raising tensions in Europe and with the U.S. Kyiv and its Western partners should send Moscow a strong deterrence message while also proposing mutual de-escalatory measures.

This week on Hold Your Fire! Richard Atwood is joined by Crisis Group experts Olga Oliker and Oleg Ignatov to look at what Russia hopes to achieve with its build-up of troops on the Ukrainian border.

Efforts to bring peace to Ukraine’s Donbas region have been deadlocked for years. The steps the belligerents take to de-escalate violence can save lives, but people still die on the front lines and beyond. Crisis Group’s new visual explainer puts these dynamics in stark relief.