Brent Scowcroft
Brent Scowcroft 1925 – 2020
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Brent Scowcroft, chairman emeritus of the Atlantic Council, president of the Scowcroft Group, and a former national security advisor to the President of the United States, passed away on August 6, 2020, at the age of ninety-five. We pay tribute here to his legacy for the United States and for the Atlantic Council.
In Memoriam
The Atlantic Council remembers Brent Scowcroft
The Atlantic Council community reacts to the passing of Brent Scowcroft and reflects on his legacy as a statesman, strategist, and public servant.
Belarus
Europe’s last dictator: The rise and (possible) fall of Alexander Lukashenko
Despite imprisoning or otherwise suppressing most of his potential rivals, Lukashenko has found himself facing a unified opposition and fighting for his political life. How did Lukashenko last so long, and why is his regime now under threat?
Lebanon
Scenes from a broken Beirut
Nonresident senior fellow Nicholas Blanford describes the situation in Beirut on one of Lebanon's darkest days.
As the global community continues to grapple with COVID-19 (coronavirus), the Atlantic Council is open for business. All business, meetings, and events, however, are occurring virtually. For more information, please view a statement from our President and CEO.
Coronavirus
A global crisis
While global policymakers race to contain the coronavirus, the outbreak has already disrupted the global economy and challenged the strength of societies. The pandemic has transformed relations between countries and could trigger a significant shift in the international order.
Tue, Jul 7, 2020
Trade and financial fragmentation: New challenges to global stability
There is greater uncertainty today about the future of global trade than at any time since the post-World War II trading system was created seven decades ago. This was true before the COVID-19 pandemic froze much of the world economy; the health crisis has added a new layer of uncertainty. We are at a historic inflection point: the global trade regime urgently needs renovation and updating to meet new challenges, yet it is fraying and fragmenting.
Tue, Jun 30, 2020
Private lenders need to step up on African debt relief
While policymakers have called for a moratorium on developing countries’ debt payments, bankers and bondholders have raised the alarm about how such action would decimate their bottom lines. There will need to be another approach.
New Atlanticist by
Fri, Jun 12, 2020
How COVID-19 is worsening America’s racial economic divide
While the White House cheered the surprising jobs numbers on June 5, many Americans—especially people of color, women, lower-skilled workers, young people, or rural residents—remain out of work and left behind by this nascent recovery.
New Atlanticist by Nicole Goldin, PhD
Upcoming events
Atlantic Council Front Page
#ACFrontPage harnesses the convening power and expertise of the Council’s fourteen programs and centers to spotlight the world’s most prominent leaders and the most compelling ideas across sectors. The virtual platform engages new audiences eager for nonpartisan and constructive solutions to current global challenges. This widely promoted 45-minute program features the Council’s most important guests and content serving as the highlight of our programming each week.
Commentary and analysis
Mon, Jun 29, 2020
NAFTA’s successor is about to take effect. Here’s why it will be good for North America—and bad for the WTO
While the USMCA preserves free-trade flows among the three member countries, its use by the United States as a template for future trade negotiations, starting with the EU and the United Kingdom, would have a far-reaching effect on future developments of world trade.
New Atlanticist by Hung Tran
Tue, Jun 23, 2020
US government broadcasters have long advanced the cause of freedom. Now they’re under threat.
One of the most effective tools for explaining America and its best values to the world may vanish. But you don’t advance freedom by dismantling free institutions or a free press. You advance it by empowering them.
New Atlanticist by Josh Lipsky, Daniel Fried
Mon, Jun 8, 2020
Where does China really stand on debt relief?
So far, many developing countries have avoided the worst effects of the virus. But it may be only a matter of time before underdeveloped health systems are overwhelmed. China can make a big difference by accelerating debt relief. But it is not clear whether Beijing is prepared to act under any motivation beyond the bottom-line concerns of its own lending institutions.
New Atlanticist by
In-depth research and reports
Flagship events
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.
Global Energy Forum
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.
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.
From the Atlantic Council’s Blogs
Foresight, Strategy, and Risks Initiative
Mathew J. Burrows
Director
Dr. Mathew J. Burrows serves as the director of the Atlantic Council’s Foresight, Strategy, and Risks Initiative in the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security. He was appointed counselor to the National Intelligence Council (NIC) in 2007 and director of the Analysis and Production Staff (APS) in 2010.
Fri, Mar 27, 2020
AI, society and governance: An introduction
AI’s increasing range of applications are having real-world consequences, both positive and negative. Those consequences, in turn, have animated spirited and at times emotional debates about how governments can craft policies to come to grips with a world increasingly shaped by AI.
Wed, Oct 30, 2019
Global risks 2035 update: Decline or new renaissance?
Our conclusion in 2016’s Global Risks 2035 was that state-on-state conflict posed a bigger threat than terrorism. In the two years since, the post-Cold War order has continued to unravel without a “new normal” emerging.
Atlantic Council Strategy Paper Series by Mathew J. Burrows
Wed, Apr 3, 2019
Ecology Meets Geopolitics
As the rivers produced by the Himalayas and other mountain ranges on the Plateau are under increasingly serious pressure, water insecurity threatens much of the continent’s peace and security.
Report by
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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