Atlantic Council blogs

Why Trump Will Soon Put Putin on Notice

By Diane Francis

On February 1, military tough guy Mike Flynn, President Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor, put Iran “officially on notice” for testing a missile in violation of a UN resolution. By contrast, on January 31 the State Department issued a tepid statement condemning a murderous military assault on a Ukrainian town in the east without condemning […]

Putting Institutions First

By Salam Fayyad

While initiating political reform is difficult, sustaining it is even more so. This is not unique to Arab societies. Rather, it is a challenge that today’s well-functioning democracies had to contend with in their often-turbulent formative years. The answer is a process of smart incrementalism, which establishes and safeguards state institutions while creating the potential […]

An Example from the Past Gives Hope for the Future

In facing the challenges of the world today, leaders and policymakers can draw on examples from the past in order to create hope for the future.  As described by Fred Kempe, president and chief executive officer of the Atlantic Council, one such example can be found in the late Gen. Andrew J. Goodpaster, a military […]

Changes in Washington, Brussels, and Berlin: What Do They Mean for Kyiv?

By Andreas Umland

As US President Donald Trump introduces a new leadership style, political and economic crises play out in the EU, and tensions in Russia’s foreign and domestic affairs increase, the effects will be astutely felt in Ukraine—a country that has become a key battleground state in the confrontation between the world’s pro- and anti-Western forces. The […]

Front Lines to Watch for Upcoming Battles in Syria

By Abdullah Almousa

Although a ceasefire, however imperfect, is currently in force, indications of an upcoming conflict have become evident among the ranks of the regime’s allies, and between the regime and the opposition.

The End of the Rose for Saakashvili

By Luis Navarro

Dynamic, revolutionary, modernizer, narcissist, opportunist: all of these are terms that have been used to describe Mikheil Saakashvili, the former president of Georgia and would-be Ukrainian leader. Over the course of a storied political career, all have been true to varying degrees. But what is true now is that Saakashvili has exceeded his expiration date […]

Containing North Korea’s nuclear ambitions

By Ivy Yang

On January 25, a senior North Korean official told NBC News in an exclusive interview that North Korea is ready to test an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) “at any time, at any place.” Choe Kang II, deputy director for North American affairs at North Korea’s foreign ministry, said the launch of the ICBM could be a major […]

Will Europe’s Far-Right Populists Come Out on Top?

By Earl Anthony Wayne

Europe’s leaders face publics that are skeptical of globalization and multiculturalism, critical of the performance of the European Commission and European Council leadership, angry about the slow pace of economic recovery, and fearful of the inflow of immigrants and terrorism. Far-right populist political parties have benefited from this sentiment. These parties are now in an […]

Al-Qaeda (Finally) Begins its Conflict with the Opposition

By Saleem al-Omar

Most opposition leaders in northern Syria understand that there is no escape from a conflict with al-Qaeda. The defining features of this new conflict have started to appear, and include a recent attack conducted by members of Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (JFS, formerly the al-Qaeda affiliated Nusra Front). The Jaysh al-Mujahidin—a moderate opposition group, despite its […]