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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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NATOSource

Feb 17, 2012

Britain and France ‘Will continue to increase their engagement with the Syrian opposition’

By the Foreign Ministry of Great Britain

From the Foreign Ministry of Great Britain:  Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy met in Paris for the UK-France Summit on 17 February. Syria was one of the areas discussed.

European Union International Organizations

NATOSource

Feb 17, 2012

German President Resigns in ‘Favors’ Scandal

By Nicholas Kulish and Melissa Eddy, the New York Times

From Nicholas Kulish and Melissa Eddy, the New York Times:  Germany’s beleaguered president, Christian Wulff, announced his resignation on Friday after prosecutors asked Parliament to strip him of his immunity from prosecution over accusations of improper ties to businessmen.

NATOSource

Feb 17, 2012

NATO to stay out of Syria even if U.N. mandate emerges

By Simon Cameron-Moore and Tulay Karadeniz, Reuters

From Simon Cameron-Moore and Tulay Karadeniz, Reuters:  NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the Western alliance had no intention of intervening in Syria even in the event of a U.N. mandate to protect civilians, and urged Middle East countries to find a way to end the spiraling violence.

New Atlanticist

Feb 17, 2012

The Future of Energy-Dominated Foreign Policy

By Derek Reveron

Since almost every government in the world values economic prosperity as a national interest, energy is a key determinant of foreign policy. Of the BRIC countries, Brazil’s and Russia’s growth are dependent on energy exports while China’s and India’s rise are dependent on energy production and imports. China’s foray into the global economy can be […]

Energy & Environment

MENASource

Feb 17, 2012

From Rivalry to Riot: What Went Wrong in Port Said

By Sara Ashour

"My friend died while cheering"read the graffiti on the wall inside a Cairo metro station, a reference to deadly rioting at a soccer stadium in Port Said on February 1 that killed nearly two hundred spectators. Although Egypt’s transition has been troubled by persistent violence, protests, and economic instability, the bloody incident at Port Said […]

New Atlanticist

Feb 17, 2012

Entente Frugale: Why England and France Must Hang Together…or Hang Separately

By Julian Lindley-French

David Cameron is today in Paris to meet with his ‘friend’ French President Nicholas Sarkozy. The ostensible purpose of the meeting is to sign a treaty of co-operation on the sharing of civil nuclear technology, i.e. the French are to remind the English of what they once knew about nuclear stuff but have now forgotten, […]

European Union International Organizations

MENASource

Feb 17, 2012

Video Interview: Abdel Rahman Youssef

By Mara Revkin

Abdel Rahman Youssef may be one of the most accomplished multi-taskers in Cairo: A poet, author, political activist and television news anchor, he has documented Egypt’s revolution with the precision of a journalist and the instincts of an insider. In his downtown office on January 27, Youssef spoke candidly about his disappointment with the failure […]

NATOSource

Feb 17, 2012

Conservatives call for Obama to intervene in Syria

By Josh Rogin, the Cable

From Josh Rogin, the Cable:  Fifty-six leading conservative foreign-policy experts wrote an open letter Friday to U.S. President Barack Obama calling on him to directly aid the Syrian opposition and protect the lives of Syrian civilians.

United States and Canada

MENASource

Feb 17, 2012

Top News: SCAF Rejects Brotherhood Proposal to Form New Government

By Mara Revkin

The Muslim Brotherhood announced that the SCAF has refused its proposal to form a new coalition government. Instead, the SCAF is insisting that current Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzouri’s cabinet remain in place for the duration of the transitional period.

NATOSource

Feb 17, 2012

Turkey will not allow NATO to share intelligence with Israel

By AFP