Iran
De-escalation still possible after Iran’s missile retaliation
Tehran's attack risks further conflict, but room remains for both sides to back down.
Middle East
Abu Dhabi dispatch: The Soleimani earthquake and coming aftershocks
One must travel to the Middle East to better sense the earthquake set off by the US drone strike that killed Iran’s legendary General Qassem Soleimani a week ago.
Digital Sherlocks
Denial, denial, confession: Iran could not avoid the truth about flight PS752
For seventy-two hours, the Iranian government and media stuck with the same talking points about the crash until the evidence overwhelmed them.
2019 in review
The Council’s “Top fifteen hits” of 2019
We look back at the Atlantic Council's top work of 2019 galvanizing US leadership alongside partners and allies to tackle the most pressing challenges confronting our nation and our world.
Global Energy Forum
Watch a playlist of all event sessions
To watch the discussions from the Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi, click the playlist button in the upper-right hand corner of the YouTube player below and select the event session you would like to watch. Refer to the event agenda to find sessions of interest.
January 10-12
The Geopolitics of the Energy Transformation
The Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Forum is the go-to conference on the geopolitics of the energy transformation, where energy and foreign policy leaders come together to set the energy agenda for the year and examine the longer-term geopolitical and geo-economic implications of the changing energy system.
The 2020 iteration of the forum focuses on three key themes: the role of the oil and gas industry in the energy transition, financing the future of energy, and interconnections in a new era of geopolitics. The forum’s regional footprint will also expand to emphasize increasing energy demand in South and Southeast Asia.
Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, the forum is held in partnership with the UAE Ministry of Energy and Industry, ADNOC, and Mubadala, and is part of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
Sun, Jan 12, 2020
Will climate change move the needle in 2020?
From the release of the Green New Deal to global protests on environmental policy, “climate [has become] a prominent national issue and all the attention it received in 2019 guarantees that it will be a top issue in an American presidential election for the first time ever,” according to former US Congressman Carlos Curbelo (R-FL).
Sun, Jan 12, 2020
Energy markets underestimate Middle East supply vulnerability
Buoyed by ample supply, global energy markets continue to underestimate risks to output from the Middle East, despite the recent escalation in tensions between the United States and Iran.
New Atlanticist by
Sat, Jan 11, 2020
Climate commitments needed to head off threats of volatility and instability
A widening gap between perceptions and reality of the global energy markets could increase volatility as governments, policy makers, and industries struggle to tackle climate change, according to Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency.
New Atlanticist by
Sun, Jan 12, 2020
Gas in the energy transition: Bridge or the destination?
“There are some who believe that gas should play no role in the global energy mix,” Ambassador Richard Morningstar, founding chairman of the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center, said at the introduction of a panel on the future of gas at the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Forum hosted in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on January 12, 2020. At the other end of the spectrum, he added, some have “called gas a destination fuel that provides a clean baseload energy needed for the developed world to grow.”
New Atlanticist by David A. Wemer
Sat, Jan 11, 2020
How can oil and gas companies contribute to the energy transition?
“There is no thing that is a magic solution” to climate change, according to Musabbeh Al-Kaabi, chief executive officer for petroleum and petrochemicals at the Mubadala Investment Company, but oil and gas companies are increasingly realizing that “the future outlook for energy consumption will require different sources of energy.”
New Atlanticist by David A. Wemer
Publications launched at the Global Energy Forum
Issue briefs and reports from Atlantic Council experts on the geopolitics of the energy transformation.
Thu, Jan 9, 2020
Energy sector diversification: Meeting demographic challenges in the MENA region
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is projected to experience significant demographic growth by 2050, growth which will have to be met with commensurate economic expansion and job opportunities, or the region will risk an increase in political instability. To meet this challenge, countries in the region must diversify their economies beyond the energy sector and expand their energy sector beyond hydrocarbons. What are the key trends that MENA countries will have to contend with, what is already being done, and what further steps should be taken?
Report by Bina Hussein
Thu, Jan 9, 2020
Election 2020: What’s at stake for energy?
As the US presidential election in November 2020 draws nearer, the energy policy platforms—including domestic energy, climate change, foreign, and trade policies—from the Democratic candidates, as well as the energy policies of a potential second Trump Administration, have become increasingly clear. The competing visions of a Republican and a Democratic administration could hardly be more disparate, and industry and external stakeholders should prepare for a volatile outlook regardless of the outcome in November 2020—what are the salient energy policies under the two scenarios and how will they address the deep and entrenched energy challenges that face the United States?
Issue Brief by
Thu, Jan 9, 2020
European energy diversification: How alternative sources and routes can bolster energy security and decarbonization
The European Union’s efforts to achieve a carbon-neutral economy present a unique and timely opportunity to strengthen European energy security. What is the EU currently doing to meet its decarbonization goals, address the role of natural gas in Europe’s low-carbon future, and explain the potential for new gas sources, alternative gas routes, and clean energy technologies to reduce carbon emissions? And how can this be done while simultaneously increasing European energy security and opportunities for transatlantic cooperation?
Issue Brief by Richard L. Morningstar, András Simonyi, Olga Khakova, Irina Markina
Issue Spotlight: Crisis in the Gulf
Escalating tensions
The United States’ assassination of top Iranian military official Qasem Soleimani has further escalated tensions in the Gulf following of a year of provocations—including drone attacks, ship seizures, and attacks and protests in Iraq—that threaten to destabilize the region and trigger wider conflict. Read the latest Atlantic Council work on the developing crisis in the Gulf and wider US-Iranian tensions.
Fri, Jan 10, 2020
US reportedly targets another top Iranian military figure, Abdul Reza Shahlai
US forces tried to target Shahlai, a senior Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps–Qods Force leader currently located in Yemen.
Thu, Jan 9, 2020
Qasem Soleimani and escalatory parity
For the better part of forty years, American action and inaction have persuaded the Islamic Republic that it could act with impunity; that the United States feared the escalatory implications of push-back. That dangerous, destabilizing belief seems to have been suspended with the killing of Soleimani.
MENASource by Frederic C. Hof
Wed, Jan 8, 2020
Washington and Tehran can step back – if they want to
After the January 8 Iranian missile attacks on Iraq, a successful tactical de-escalation requires both that the Iranian leadership intends for its military actions not to be escalatory and that the Trump administration perceives those actions as they were intended. In the absence of direct communications between the United States and Iran, however, the potential for misunderstanding and thus the risk of miscalculation remains high.
New Atlanticist by William F. Wechsler
Wed, Jan 8, 2020
Iran’s missiles may have avoided the worst outcome
If there had been significant US casualties, the world would have awoken to the dawn of a regional war, because the Trump administration would have been compelled to attack the launch sites in Iran—and probably other targets in Iran, also. If the present news holds, the situation is slightly less dangerous, if still perilous.
New Atlanticist by Thomas S. Warrick
Mon, Jan 6, 2020
By killing Soleimani, the United States destroyed its relationship with Iraq
The Iraqi parliament vote to remove US troops confirms that if Iraqis are cornered and forced to choose between the United States and Iran, they will find it safer to choose Iran.
MENASource by Abbas Kadhim
Commentary and analysis
Mon, Jan 13, 2020
Spotlight: Alejandro Giammattei’s first 100 days
Guatemala will begin a new chapter today with the presidential inauguration of Alejandro Giammattei Falla. At the center of the incoming pro-business administration: ushering in a new era of economic growth and job creation. With 59 percent of Guatemalans living in poverty, Central America’s largest and most populous country is also one the poorest and most unequal nations in Latin America. What are the priorities of President Giammattei to address such longstanding challenges? With the termination of the CICIG and ever-present migration challenges, can President Giammattei improve the living conditions for the millions of Guatemalans who seek a better future in their own country?
Issue Brief by
Mon, Dec 16, 2019
The domestic fallout from the UK general election
The prime minister now has almost unfettered power, with little or no restraints from either the formal opposition parties or from within his own party. The new MPs assembling at Westminster today, many of them representing former industrial areas captured from Labour, present both a challenge and opportunity.
New Atlanticist by John M. Roberts
Mon, Dec 9, 2019
US policy hinders positive ‘regime change’ in Iran
With the rare exception of a weekend prisoner swap, the record of US-Iran relations since the Trump administration came to office has been dismal both for the Iranian people and for US national interests.
IranSource by
In-depth research and reports
Flagship events
The Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Forum is the go-to conference on the geopolitics of the energy transformation, where energy and foreign policy leaders come together to set the energy agenda for the year and examine the longer-term geopolitical and geo-economic implications of the changing energy system. Held in Abu Dhabi 10-12 January under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, the forum is held in partnership with the UAE Ministry of Energy and Industry, ADNOC, and Mubadala, and is part of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
2020 Distinguished Leadership Awards
Among the most significant events on the Washington calendar celebrating global leaders, the Distinguished Leadership Awards is one of the Atlantic Council’s flagship convenings – bringing together a global audience of over 800 guests from more than fifty countries–including global policymakers, business leaders, military brass, and top-tier media.
2019 Global Citizen Awards
The tenth annual Atlantic Council Global Citizen Awards honored President of the Republic of Chile Sebastián Piñera; Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte; Brian Grazer, storyteller, movie and television producer, founder, and philanthropist; will.i.am, founder of the Black Eyed Peas, Founder & CEO of I.AM+, and Founder and President, i.am.angel Foundation.
Atlantic Council in the news
From the Atlantic Council’s Blogs
Spotlight: Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East Programs
Director
William Wechsler
William F. Wechsler is director for Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council and director of the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. Wechsler’s most recent government position was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Combatting Terrorism. He advised multiple Secretaries and helped coordinate interagency policies on a wide range of direct and indirect actions.
Tue, Oct 8, 2019
The MENA region: A great power competition
The idea of a ‘Russian resurgence’ in the Middle East set against a perceived American withdrawal has captured the attention of policymakers and scholars alike, warranting further examination.
Thu, Nov 7, 2019
Saudi-backed Yemeni government and separatists sign power-sharing agreement
On Tuesday, November 5, the Hadi government signed a power-sharing agreement with southern separatists in Riyadh. The separatists and Hadi-led Yemen Government are backed by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, specifically by the United Arab Emirates. Infighting between them further fractured the civil war in August when the separatists seized Aden from Saudi-led forces. It […]
MENASource by
Tue, Nov 5, 2019
Iran’s revolutionary bluster masks its role as oppressor in the Middle East
At their core, the problems in Iraq and Lebanon are the same as those in Iran, as they are in Egypt, Syria, Algeria and elsewhere in the Middle East: castes of entrenched, corrupt and incompetent rulers lord over young populations yearning for better lives.
IranSource by Borzou Daragahi
Critical Issues
Resilience
The growing threats of climate change, migration, natural disasters, and spillover from violent conflict are forcing policy makers to focus on the resilience of their societies and institutions. While not all crises can be avoided, societies can be made more resilient through proper preparation before, during, and after a disaster or shock occurs.
READ MORE
Disinformation
The rise of the internet and online social networks has altered the scope and scale at which people access, consume, and communicate information. But the same technologies that have democratized access to information have also enabled malicious actors who seek to undermine our democratic values and processes. Disinformation is false or misleading information spread with the intention to deceive.
READ MORE
NATO
NATO is the bedrock of transatlantic security, encompassing nearly thirty democracies across North America and Europe. Created to defend against the Soviet Union, the Alliance today protects member states against conventional attack, engages in peacekeeping and stabilization operations, and leads counterterrorism and piracy efforts. NATO works with partner countries around the world and continues to promise an “open door” for countries to become members if they fulfill the Alliance’s democratic and operational standards.
READ MORE
Critical Regions
Africa
A continent of fifty-four nations, Africa holds vast opportunity and promise. Its 1.2 billion population is expected to double by 2050 and become the world’s largest region. Alongside this demographic boom, Africa is home to almost half the world’s fastest-growing economies as its leaders are taking steps to expand the movement of goods, people, and capital within the continent. Demand for democracy is high and protest movements have proven that citizen activism can unseat consolidated African strongmen.
READ MORE
Europe & Eurasia
Stretching from the shores of the Atlantic to the mountains of Central Asia, the European and Eurasian landmass contains both some of the most stable and wealthy countries in the world, as well as some of the poorest and those led by repressive regimes. After centuries of devastating conflicts, new institutions and organizations for economic, political, and security integration provide an opportunity to bring stability
READ MORE
Middle East
Stretching from the Western Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean, the Middle East continues to be a region struggling with violent conflict, political repression, and poor development. Numerous pro-democracy protest movements, a burgeoning youth population, and efforts to reform governments and lessen economic dependence on oil, however, are causes for optimism. The United States and the international community must remain engaged with the region to provide support for these positive moves and to address the many remaining challenges.
READ MORE
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