Atlantic Council blogs

Ich Bin Ein Westerner

By Julian Lindley-French

“Ich bin ein Berliner.” Fifty years ago this week President Kennedy made his famous defiant assertion of Western solidarity at the strategic fault line of the Berlin Wall.  What today is the state of the West? Kennedy’s moment has passed into strategic folklore.  However, perhaps more enduring was a speech he made the next day in Frankfurt.  Responding […]

Top News: Adoption of Tunisia’s Constitution Edges Closer

Senators Seek Study on Risk of Cyber Attacks Against Missile Defense Systems

By Global Security Newswire

From Global Security Newswire:  The Senate Armed Services Committee wants the Defense Department to undertake an audit of its missile defense systems to see what, if any, technologies are vulnerable to cyber strikes, Inside Defense reported on Tuesday.

Top News: Morsi addresses people one year after taking power; Egypt opposition criticizes speech

In a televised address lasting more than two and a half hours, President Mohamed Morsi blamed loyalists of fallen dictator Hosni Mubarak for the "paralysis" that has marked his first year in office but also offered an olive branch to opponents that also seemed to address demands from the army. 

Rumors from Tripoli

By Karim Mezran

With the election of Nouri Ali Abu Sahmain on June 25, the Libyan General National Congress (GNC) is now under new leadership; the general public in Libya seems content with these results, as do leaders in major capitals around the world who have been closely monitoring these developments. Abu Sahmain is a member of the […]

The LAF’s House of Cards

By Faysal Itani

Many Lebanese and outside observers view the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) as a neutral arbiter and defender of Lebanese of all sects and political affiliations; however, the recent outbreak of fighting in Sidon between the LAF and followers of Salafi sheikh, Ahmad al-Assir, casts doubt on this convenient and widely-accepted narrative. The violence in Sidon […]

Hope for Peace in Syria, But Don’t Expect It

By Rajan Menon

The statistics surrounding the slaughter in Syria sound surreal. In the 27 months since the uprising against Bashar al-Assad’s government erupted in March 2011, 100,000 people have been killed, the overwhelming majority by Assad’s army and paramilitary goons. If you’re into grisly math, that works out to an average of 122 war-related deaths each day. […]

In Response to US Ambassador Anne Patterson

By Dina Guirguis

US Ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson delivered a speech on June 18 at the headquarters of the Ibn Khaldun Center, a venerated non-governmental organization in Cairo, “to set the record straight” on the US government’s relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood. Patterson defended US support of Egypt’s government, emphasizing its “elected nature.” While she expressed an […]

The Return of Spanish Terrorism?

By Alexander Ward

Conventional wisdom holds that terrorism in Spain has finally dissipated. However, political and economic trends might intersect with rising separatist extremism in Spain, leading to a return to the terroristic history that has plagued the country for years.

Despite Bogota’s Interest, NATO does not Formally Recognize Colombia as a Partner

By MercoPress

From MercoPress:  The Security of Information Agreement does not formally recognize Colombia as a NATO partner but constitutes a first step for future cooperation in the security field.