Kyiv’s relations with Europe in the age of Nord Stream 2
What can and should the EU do to support Ukrainian sovereignty?
Experts & Staff
Andrew Wilson
Senior Policy Fellow
Areas of expertise
Ukraine; comparative politics of democratisation in the post-Soviet states; political technology
Languages
English, Russian, Ukrainian, some Belarusian, conversational French
Biography
Andrew Wilson is a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. His topics of focus include Ukraine, comparative politics of democratisation in the post-Soviet states, and political technology
Wilson is Professor in Ukrainian Studies at University College London. His book Ukraine Crisis: What the West Needs to Know was published by Yale in October 2014 in the UK and in November in the USA. He has worked extensively on the comparative politics of the post-Soviet states since 1990. His other books include Belarus: The Last European Dictatorship (2011), The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation (Third edition, 2009), Ukraine’s Orange Revolution (2005) and Virtual Politics: Faking Democracy in the Post-Soviet World (2005).
Faltering fightback: Zelensky’s piecemeal campaign against Ukraine’s oligarchs
The campaign has encouraged Zelensky’s tendency towards governance through informal means. This has allowed him to act speedily – but it risks letting oligarchic influence return
Belarus’s brutal politics
What kind of implications do the developments in Belarus have for the wider neighbourhood and Europe?
Separate ways: Contrasting elections in Georgia and Moldova
Recent elections have seen Georgia’s ruling party dig in, while Moldova’s has lost the presidency
Misrule of law: Ukraine’s constitutional crisis
President Volodymyr Zelensky could violate the constitution as he tries to prevent the Constitutional Court from dismantling governance reforms
Lessons from Belarus: How the EU can support clean elections in Moldova and Georgia
The EU should make use of its significant leverage in Georgia and Moldova to counter their ruling parties’ extensive repertoire of electoral dirty tricks
Belarus and Armenia: How Russia handles uprisings
Russia’s goal in its neighbourhood is to regain influence, not to be surrounded by neutral, self-sufficient buffer states
Trump’s dirty tricks
Although US President Donald Trump’s efforts to undermine the election are shameless, they are still more subtle than the outright election rigging that one finds…
Protest movement in Belarus: Will Lukashenko survive the current state (of) crisis?
In this week’s episode, Jeremy Shapiro stepped in as host and welcomes senior policy fellows Kadri Liik and Andrew Wilson as well as political scientist…
Why the EU now needs a deliberate Belarus policy
A new mass civic movement has emerged in Belarus – the EU should put supporting it at the heart of its new policy towards the country
Publications
Faltering fightback: Zelensky’s piecemeal campaign against Ukraine’s oligarchs
The campaign has encouraged Zelensky’s tendency towards governance through informal means. This has allowed him to act speedily – but it risks letting oligarchic influence return
Lessons from Belarus: How the EU can support clean elections in Moldova and Georgia
The EU should make use of its significant leverage in Georgia and Moldova to counter their ruling parties’ extensive repertoire of electoral dirty tricks
Zelensky unchained: What Ukraine’s new political order means for its future
Introduction Volodymyrska Hill, Kyiv, on a June evening in 2019. Kyivans and tourists stroll along the riverside park’s newly relaid paths, many wending their way…
Partners for Life: Europe’s Unanswered ‘Eastern Question’
Dramatic change may not be on the cards, but the EU can and should shift to a ‘status quo plus’ approach that builds on existing activity
So far from god, so close to Russia: Belarus and the Zapad military exercise
Renewed Minsk-Moscow cooperation in the ‘Zapad’ war games should not see the door to Belarus closed
Russia 2030: A story of great power dreams and small victorious wars
The future of Europe’s relations with Russia looks bleak as the Kremlin pursues an increasingly aggressive foreign policy
Survival of the richest: How oligarchs block reform in Ukraine
The penetration of Ukrainian politics by the super-rich oligarchy still forms a major obstacle to reform
What does Ukraine think?
Ukrainian experts on war, politics and national identity
From sanctions to summits: Belarus after the Ukraine crisis
As the European order shifts, the EU has a chance to rethink its strategy and objectives
European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015
The fifth edition of ECFR’s Foreign Policy Scorecard examines EU’s response to a year of crisis
Articles
Separate ways: Contrasting elections in Georgia and Moldova
Recent elections have seen Georgia’s ruling party dig in, while Moldova’s has lost the presidency
Misrule of law: Ukraine’s constitutional crisis
President Volodymyr Zelensky could violate the constitution as he tries to prevent the Constitutional Court from dismantling governance reforms
Belarus and Armenia: How Russia handles uprisings
Russia’s goal in its neighbourhood is to regain influence, not to be surrounded by neutral, self-sufficient buffer states
Why the EU now needs a deliberate Belarus policy
A new mass civic movement has emerged in Belarus – the EU should put supporting it at the heart of its new policy towards the country
An election in Belarus: How the West could support a marginalised opposition
In the run-up to a difficult election for President Alexander Lukashenka, the three main opposition candidates have been excluded from the vote and there have been mass arrests. Western countries should try to deter further repression in Belarus without isolating the country.
The least predictable Belarusian election in decades
The Belarusian presidential election campaign features at least three candidates the government cannot control or ignore – all of whom have the potential to reach a broad audience.
Ukraine and the oligarchs: Endless delays to reform
The coronavirus has hit Ukraine hard, but the IMF has promised the country less funding than seemed likely only months ago. Self-interested oligarchs are delaying necessary new reforms and pushing back against those Ukraine has already made.
The coronavirus in Eastern Europe: Avoiding another Chernobyl
Eastern Europe has so far not seen an outbreak of the coronavirus as severe as that in the west of the continent. But the situation…
Shock to the sistema: Ukraine’s youthful new government
Will Ukraine's young new leaders begin to reckon with their deep state?
Crimea: Russia’s newest Potemkin Village
Grand projects funded by Russia can do little to cover up the lopsided and inadequate economy and infrastructure that Crimeans are now living with
Podcasts
Kyiv’s relations with Europe in the age of Nord Stream 2
What can and should the EU do to support Ukrainian sovereignty?
Belarus’s brutal politics
What kind of implications do the developments in Belarus have for the wider neighbourhood and Europe?
Trump’s dirty tricks
Although US President Donald Trump’s efforts to undermine the election are shameless, they are still more subtle than the outright election rigging that one finds…
Protest movement in Belarus: Will Lukashenko survive the current state (of) crisis?
In this week’s episode, Jeremy Shapiro stepped in as host and welcomes senior policy fellows Kadri Liik and Andrew Wilson as well as political scientist…
The Sea of Azov: The newest front in the war in Ukraine?
Mark Leonard speaks with Andrew Wilson, Kadri Liik and Nicu Popescu about the Kerch Strait ship capture, what this means and how the international community…
Is Peace in Sight in Donbas?
ECFR’s director Mark Leonard discusses peacekeeping in Ukraine and the EU's Russia policy with ECFR's Russia expert, Kadri Liik and ECFR's Ukraine expert Andrew Wilson
The European Union and the Eastern neighbourhood
Discussion avec Andrew Wilson, senior policy fellow du programme Wider Europe de l'ECFR et Mathilde Ciulla, coordinatrice du bureau de Paris de l'ECFR,…
L’Union européenne et le Partenariat oriental
Podcast de la conférence “L’Union européenne et le Partenariat oriental” du 19/10 à la Maison de l'Europe de Paris avec Andrew Wilson, senior…
ECFR’s World in 30 Minutes: Ukraine’s 25th anniversary of independence
ECFR’s director Mark Leonard speaks with experts Andrew Wilson, Fredrik Wesslau and Gustav Gressel, about rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine in the Donbass, the Minsk agreement,…
Russia – future imperfect?
How will Russia and Europe’s eastern neighbours look 14 years from now? What key trends will play out in Russia and Eastern Europe? What sort…
In the media
The fruits of those relatively good economic years were widely shared […] and while it’s not true to say there wasn’t corruption, there hasn’t been the same kind of oligarchy or ma
Andrew Wilson explains that Lukashenko’s position also stems from the strong economy in the 1990s and 2000s before the global economic crash of 2008
Dodon’s party has ‘directly copied the Kremlin’s official tactics’ and ‘develop[ed] a complex ecosystem of trolls and fake news outlets.’
Euronews refers to Andrew Wilson’s latest policy brief on clean elections in Moldova and Georgia
It is always difficult to be accurate with numbers, but it still is a lot for a small country like Belarus, and given last week’s intimidation context, it is an impressive number
Andrew Wilson is quoted by L'Echo regarding the mobilisation in Belarus
There was a kind of social contract, with workers especially, and it has broken down
Andrew Wilson comments on the conflict and protests after the elections in Belarus
Andrew Wilson est cité par Le Soir à propos des réactions européennes à la crise en Biélorussie