Atlantic Council blogs

Russia’s Information Warfare Targets German Soldiers in Lithuania

By Deutsche Welle

Earlier this month, outside influences, again widely believed to be Russian, tried to replicate the success of the “Lisa” faux-scandal in Lithuania.

Amid Growing Threats, Germany Plans to Expand Troop Numbers to Nearly 200,000

By Robbie Gramer, Foreign Policy

Germany is slowly shedding its reluctance to wield military power, announcing Wednesday it would boost the size of its armed forces to nearly 200,000 over the next seven years.

TRADE in ACTION – February 23, 2017

By Global Business & Economics Program

This week in the newsletter: After negotiations ended in 2013, the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement entered into force. On the European side, global leaders met at the Munich Security Conference, and the EU and Japan agreed to work towards an early conclusion of their FTA negotiations, while Chancellor Merkel met with IMF’s Christine Lagarde and President […]

The West Needs to Call Russia’s Bluff in the Balkans

By Dimitar Bechev

For all the uncertainties about the Balkans, one thing stays the same. Every few years, the headline “We Are Heading for War Again” crops up in the Western media. The last time this happened, the 2014 centennial of the First World War inspired pundits to ask whether the world is on the cusp of another […]

Will New National Security Adviser McMaster Clash with Donald Trump on Russia?

By Damien Sharkov, Newsweek

Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, appointed by Trump on Monday, is known for being strongly driven by integrity—a quality that critics felt Mike Flynn lacked

Unintended Consequences of Safe Zones in Fighting the Islamic State

By Ghaith al-Ahmad

“The sound of gunfire outside makes me forget the hunger pangs,” says Um Mohamed, trembling with fright. This was after the battle intensified between Syrian regime forces and fighters from the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, or Daesh) in the city of Deir Ezzor. Military experts predicted that ISIS would fall back towards Deir Ezzor city […]

NAFTA in Need of an Update

Former US, Canadian, and Mexican officials make pitch to keep strategic trade deal US President Donald Trump has called the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) “the worst trade deal,” but former US, Canadian, and Mexican officials, speaking at the Atlantic Council on February 22, warned against abandoning the strategic deal that binds their three […]

China Taking Clean Energy Leadership from the United States

By Madison Freeman

With commitments to clean energy and combatting climate change wavering under the new US administration, leadership in renewable energy is quietly shifting away from the United States across the Pacific, where China is rapidly building its dominance. US President Donald Trump has been clear about his support for fossil fuels. Though his stance on renewable […]

Which Muslim Brotherhood?

By H.A. Hellyer

The Trump administration does not fail to disappoint those that expected a raucous and riotous White House. It has only been a few weeks since President Donald Trump took office, and already his tenure is connected with scandals and resignations. Against the backdrop of that, nevertheless, two policies in particular have attracted a particular amount […]