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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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MENASource

Oct 16, 2014

What’s Happening with Suspended Military Aid for Egypt? Part I

By Amy Hawthorne

Last October, the Obama administration announced it was holding back four large-scale weapons systems purchased for Egypt, including 125 M1-A1 battle tank kits, twenty F-16 fighter jets, twenty Harpoon cruise missiles, and ten Apache attack helicopters.  It made their delivery contingent upon “credible progress toward an inclusive, democratically elected civilian government through free and fair elections.”  This […]

North Africa

UkraineAlert

Oct 16, 2014

Putin’s Balkan Gambit

By Damon Wilson

Buoyed by Successes in Europe’s East, Russia’s Leader Turns His Gaze to Serbia and Its Neighbors Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine aims to deny that nation a European future, partly by closing the door permanently to membership in NATO or the European Union. Putin’s aims, however, are not limited to extending a Russian […]

Russia The Balkans

Trade in Action

Oct 16, 2014

Italian Prime Minister Renzi reiterates Italy’s Committment to TTIP

By Global Business & Economics Program

Remarks by Ambassador Michael Froman: “Dialogue on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership “This is a natural moment to take stock of where we are, how far we’ve come, to step back and honestly assess the challenges that lie ahead.” Yesterday, US Trade Representative Ambassador Michael Froman spoke at an event in Rome, stressing the […]

Economy & Business Trade and tariffs

MENASource

Oct 16, 2014

Dealing With Syria’s Fractious Opposition

By Frederic C. Hof

Reports out of Istanbul detail yet another episode of Syrian opposition disunity: this time over the selection of a prime minister to head an Interim Government long-since established by the Syrian National Coalition.

Syria

MENASource

Oct 16, 2014

Top News: Egypt Allegedly Strikes Libya Militia Positions

By MENASource

Deepening their involvement in Libya, Egyptian warplanes bombed Islamist militia positions in Benghazi, according to two officials, as part of a three-to-six month Egyptian-led campaign that will eventually involve Libyan ground troops trained by Egyptian forces. The operation, they said, was requested by the Tobruk-based Libyan administration.

MENASource

Oct 16, 2014

Top News: Libyan, Egyptian Officials Deny Egypt Bombing Benghazi

By EgyptSource

  News agency Associated Press (AP), reported on Wednesday the involvement of Egyptian aircraft in the bombing of Islamist militias in Libya’s second city, Benghazi. However, Egypt’s presidential spokesperson denied the claims.

New Atlanticist

Oct 16, 2014

Only a Long-Term Approach Can Resolve Terrorist Threat in Yemen

By Danya Greenfield

Two suicide bombing attacks in Yemen last week took the lives of at least 67 people and wounded more than 75 people, widely assumed to be the handiwork of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). This horrendous loss of life underscores the need for United States and its allies to reevaluate how we combat extremist […]

Yemen

MENASource

Oct 16, 2014

Factbox: Egypt’s Student Protests

By Shiyun Lu

Egypt’s new academic year has begun amid heightened tension between students and the authorities. With protests taking place at most public universities throughout Egypt, at least 127 students were arrested in the first three days.

North Africa
German Minister of Defense Ursula von der Leyen, Jan. 31, 2014

NATOSource

Oct 16, 2014

A Crisis in German Defense

By Peter Dörrie, War is Boring

The German armed forces have come clean. They’ve admitted they’re incapable of managing arms procurement—and have systematically neglected the hardware that’s already in service.

Germany NATO

MENASource

Oct 16, 2014

EconSource: Egypt Stocks Inch up Wednesday Signaling Possible Rebound

By EconSource

Egypt’s main stocks edged up by 0.18 percent on Wednesday. After seven sessions in the red this signals a possible rebound with low stock prices starting to bolster demand. With falling US producer prices, fears had dipped Global stocks and most Arab bourses.