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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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SyriaSource

Nov 15, 2016

The Impact of the Kurdish-Led Campaign to Isolate Raqqa

By Haid Haid

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced in a statement on November 5 that they would be launching Operation Euphrates’s Wrath to isolate Raqqa—the Islamic State (ISIS)’s de facto capital. The operation—backed by the US-led coalition—aims to encircle Raqqa by taking control of surrounding villages and access routes to weaken ISIS and ultimately liberate the […]

Syria

New Atlanticist

Nov 15, 2016

‘Channeling Brussels’ with Federica Mogherini

By Teri Schultz

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on 2016 US presidents and EU challenges Welcome to the inaugural episode of “Channeling Brussels”, a new podcast on transatlantic foreign and security policy that bypasses the blah blah blah and digs  deep. As your host, I’ve been covering the European Union and NATO for a decade for major […]

European Union International Organizations

IranSource

Nov 15, 2016

Lights and Shadows in Trump’s Iran Policy

By Shahir Shahidsaless

It is difficult to predict President-Elect Donald Trump’s foreign policy in general, and thus even more difficult his policy toward Iran, given the contradictory positions he took during the campaign. However, drawing on key signs, there are both lights and shadows in his likely policies toward Iran.

Iran
HMS Iron Duke fires Harpoon missile, Oct. 18, 2010

NATOSource

Nov 15, 2016

British Navy to Lose Missiles and be Left Only with Guns

By Ben Farmer, Telegraph

Royal Navy warships will be left without anti-ship missiles and be forced to rely on naval guns because of cost-cutting, the Ministry of Defence has admitted.

NATO Security & Defense
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Feb. 5, 2015

NATOSource

Nov 15, 2016

NATO Secretary General: ‘Europe has to do More, Europe has to Step Up’

By Jens Stoltenberg, NATO

A stronger NATO-EU cooperation will also strengthen the European defence and I welcome the decision made yesterday by the defence ministers and foreign ministers of the EU on the implementation of security and defence of the global strategy

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Nov 15, 2016

A Path to Growth for US LNG

By Edoardo Saravalle

The shale boom and the newfound abundance of natural gas have put the United States on track to become the world’s third-largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG). This new role in the global market has the potential to benefit both the United States and its worldwide partners. It will make the natural gas trade […]

Energy & Environment Oil and Gas

FutureSource

Nov 15, 2016

The San Francisco Bay Area: Innovation Capital of the World

The San Francisco Bay Area was the final stop of the Strategic Foresight Initiative’s (SFI) innovation road trip, part of its Future of American Technological Leadership project. Together with Qualcomm, SFI seeks to examine the bases of American strength in technological innovation. After visiting Madison, Wisconsin, Boulder, Colorado, and Austin, Texas, SFI’s visit to the Bay Area featured two […]

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2016

Ukraine’s Reforms Are Pointless without Resolving Security Issues

By Andreas Umland

Making Western assistance to Kyiv more effective is crucial to Ukraine’s future. Yet the West’s current approach is plagued by a strategic defect. When Western aid and Kyiv’s reforms reach a tipping point, they will trigger increasingly aggressive counter-reactions from Moscow for domestic political reasons in Russia. Until Ukraine’s fundamental security challenges are met, Western […]

Russia Ukraine

MENASource

Nov 14, 2016

Tal Afar: Prospect for Escalation

By Ramzy Mardini

The international media often describes the city of Mosul, the capital of Ninawa province, as the Islamic State’s (ISIS) last remaining stronghold in Iraq. However, there is another major stronghold that may soon be a flashpoint between rival factions of the anti-ISIS coalition. In late October, Iraq’s Shia militias opened a new front in the […]

Iran Iraq

New Atlanticist

Nov 14, 2016

Trump Must Reassure Israel, Gulf Partners Over Iran, says Retired Gen. David H. Petraeus

By Ashish Kumar Sen

This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. As the next president of the United States, Donald Trump should reassure both Arab Gulf partners and Israel of a US commitment to address the threat posed by Iran, said retired Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, a former director of the CIA who serves on the Atlantic […]

Economy & Business International Organizations