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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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Fast Thinking

Dec 8, 2020

FAST THINKING: Biden’s surprise pick for defense secretary

By Atlantic Council

The biggest surprise of the Biden transition so far is here: The president-elect has picked retired general Lloyd Austin as his nominee for secretary of defense. Is he the right person for the job? And what does the historic selection mean?

Defense Industry Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Dec 8, 2020

Can privatization transform Ukraine’s alcohol industry?

By Sergey Bleskun

In 2019, President Zelenskyy initiated the privatization of Ukraine's state-owned alcohol producers in a bid to reform what is one of the most corrupt sectors of the Ukrainian economy and generate budget revenues.

Corruption Economy & Business

MENASource

Dec 8, 2020

To move forward, US policy on Iraq requires balancing confrontation with Iran

By C. Anthony Pfaff

If Washington wants to shape Iranian behavior relative to Iraq—or anywhere for that matter—it has to give Tehran alternatives it can accept.

Iran Iraq

IranSource

Dec 8, 2020

A history of continuity in Iran’s long nuclear program

By Sina Azodi

Iran’s interest in developing a nuclear deterrent is often attributed to the Islamic Republic. However, in reality, this interest predates the 1979 revolution and reflects a deep-seated desire for national prestige and development, as well as a need to deter regional rivals.

Iran Middle East

Fast Thinking

Dec 7, 2020

FAST THINKING: The next stage of Venezuela’s power struggle

By Atlantic Council

The Trump administration recognized opposition figure Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president and mobilized nations around the world to do the same. But Nicolás Maduro is still in power—and perhaps even more entrenched after winning control this weekend of the National Assembly in an election boycotted by Guaidó and his allies. What does the election mean for the opposition’s future?

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

GeoTech Cues

Dec 7, 2020

Reimagining a just society pt. 1 | Is a different world possible?

By Carol Dumaine

The GeoTech Center’s mission is to define practicable initiatives to ensure new technologies and advances in data capabilities benefit people, prosperity, and peace in open societies. Its overarching goal is a “world comprised of just societies.” The GeoTech’s mandate is an ambitious one and, while focused on applying new technologies to solutions to global problems, is anchored in an explicit assumption that its efforts will promote just societies.

Civil Society Coronavirus

New Atlanticist

Dec 7, 2020

US investors face half-baked Trump restrictions on Chinese securities

By Jeremy Mark

As the Trump administration tries to accelerate economic decoupling from China before leaving office, it has turned its attention to international finance by targeting investments in Chinese companies designated as threats to US national security. In that process, it is injecting uncertainty into markets by forcing investors to adjust to rapidly evolving restrictions.

China Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

Event Recap

Dec 7, 2020

Event recap | At the crossroads of emerging technologies and security during the pandemic

By Henry Westerman

On Thursday, December 3, the Embassy of Finland and the Atlantic Council’s GeoTech Center convened a partially public, partially private roundtable to discuss the impact technology on contemporary society, politics, and transatlantic relations. The roundtable sought to consider specific policy steps that could build trust in governments, corporations, and technologies alike, both in the United States and Europe, so as to overcome the numerous technological challenges of the present and issues poised for the future.

Cybersecurity Digital Policy

New Atlanticist

Dec 7, 2020

Remittances show promise in the face of the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic

By Gabriella Cova

With a projected 9 percent contraction in regional gross domestic product (GDP) for this year, experts fear that the heightened economic uncertainty and lower foreign demand brought on by the health crisis might signify yet another lost decade for Latin America. There is one factor, however, that paints a particularly promising picture for the outlook of the region: remittances.

Coronavirus Latin America

New Atlanticist

Dec 7, 2020

Belarusian opposition leader’s message to the West: ‘Stay with us and we will win’

By David A. Wemer

Explicit support from Western governments for the Belarusian people and stronger pressure on Lukashenka and his allies will help oust the regime and allow for new elections, Tsikhanouskaya said. “Stay with us and we will win.”

Belarus Civil Society