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Atlantic Council blogs provide short-form analyses from Council experts and a wider community of global voices on the world’s most important news stories.
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UkraineAlert

Nov 7, 2017

What the Odesa Port Saga Means for Reform in Ukraine

By Peter J. Marzalik

In an interview last October, Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groisman revealed that not a single x-ray scanner was operational at customs checkpoints in Ukraine, suggesting that corrupt customs officers had deliberately damaged the equipment to facilitate criminal activity. The accusation speaks to the severity of entrenched corruption in the customs services of Ukraine, even amid […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2017

Q&A: How Can Ukraine Get a Better Grade on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index?

By Melinda Haring

Ukraine just received a marginally better grade on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index, moving from 80th place in 2017 to 76th place in 2018. Kyiv reduced the cost of construction permits, strengthened minority investor protections, and reduced labor taxes. To put things in perspective, it’s easier to do business in Azerbaijan, Belarus, […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Nov 6, 2017

Trump Administration’s ‘Solid’ Guidance on Russia Sanctions

By Brian O’Toole and Daniel Fried

A potentially significant Russia sanctions action flew under the radar and escaped broad notice in the wake of the fallout from special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s investigation last week.   The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the US State Department released guidance on implementation of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act […]

Japan Trade Tile

Trade in Action

Nov 6, 2017

TRADE IN ACTION November 6

By Global Business & Economics Program

THIS WEEK IN TRADEThe Bank of England is expecting that up to 75,000 jobs could be lost in financial services following Britain’s departure from the EU. 

Economy & Business Japan

MENASource

Nov 6, 2017

Can Libya put the cart before the horse?

By Karim Mezran

In the wake of the Security Council’s renewal of the United Nations (UN) mission in Libya (UNSMIL) in September, a sequel to UN-led mediation efforts directed by a new Special Representative of the Secretary General is underway in Libya. It once again hopes to reach an agreement among the main actors of the Libyan crisis […]

Libya

UkraineAlert

Nov 6, 2017

Why We Don’t Live Like Britain

By Sergey Fursa

Having admitted to a decade-old sexual harassment incident in which he touched a journalist’s knee at a party conference, British Defense Minister Michael Fallon resigned, stating, “I accept that in the past I have fallen below the high standards that we require of the Armed Forces that I have the honor to represent…I am therefore […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Nov 6, 2017

US Strikes on ISIS in Somalia Underscore Threat, Vulnerabilities

By J. Peter Pham

On November 3, the United States carried out two separate airstrikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) in Somalia, the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced in a statement. The operations marked the first time that US forces have targeted ISIS militants in the conflict-ridden Horn of Africa country, where al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab has […]

Africa Somalia

MENASource

Nov 3, 2017

Russia uses Uqayribat and the Islamic State to pressure Turkey

By Abdullah Almousa

In early July, Syrian regime forces backed by Russian air force and Iranian militias seized the entire desert area between Khanasir, Ithriya and al-Rasafah, split administratively between Aleppo, Raqqa, and Hama. In mid-August, the regime launched a campaign against the Islamic State group in eastern Hama province, east of Salamyeh city. It attacked from two […]

Russia Turkey

MENASource

Nov 3, 2017

Libya’s warring parties play a dangerous game working with Madkhali Salafists

By Ahmed Salah Ali

The current fight against the Islamic State (ISIS, IS, Daesh) and Salafi jihadis in Libya should not distract from other Salafi groups in Benghazi and Tripoli that are spreading and enforcing anti-democractic and illiberal views and practices. The Madkhali Salafist-inspired groups are slowly gaining ground via both the al-Tawhid Brigades in the east under Field […]

Libya

New Atlanticist

Nov 3, 2017

ASEAN and the Qatar Crisis

By Giorgio Cafiero

The months-old diplomatic crisis involving Qatar and the quartet—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, and Bahrain—has given Doha more reason to push for deeper energy, trade, and investment ties with dynamic economies of the Far East. To pursue these opportunities, last month Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani travelled to Malaysia, Singapore, […]

Indo-Pacific The Gulf