Atlantic Council blogs

A More Optimistic Davos

By Richard Edelman

I have come down from the mountains for the twelfth time, with my head still aching not from excessive partying but from information overload at the World Economic Forum. Imagine being invited to an all you can eat buffet, with the most delectable foods laid before you, but with an unrealistic ten minute time limit […]

The Power of Planning

By Kenneth Weisbrode

The predictable round of American finger-pointing over the crisis in Egypt has already begun. Senator Dianne Feinstein and others are demanding to know why the CIA did not warn the president that such a crisis was about to happen. Perennial critics of the intelligence community are busy recalling such failures of the past. Once again […]

Atlantic Update 2/7/11

By Jason Harmala

Western powers refrain from demanding Mubarak’s resignation, and a row continues between Japan and Russia over the disputed Kuril Islands.

Karzai Seeks End to NATO Reconstruction Teams

By Judy Dempsey, the New York Times

Report: Russia warns US over missile defense plans

By Vladimir Isachenkov, the AP

NATO Chief warns of a weaker and divided Europe, “adrift from the United States”

By NATO

From NATO:  Over the past two years, defence spending by NATO’s European member nations has shrunk by some 45 billion dollars – that is the equivalent of Germany’s entire annual defence budget.

Cyber Security and Freedom: Rules For The Road

By James Joyner

"Cyberspace is changing the way we view and conduct foreign policy as well as transforming our everyday lives," British Foreign Secretary William Hague told the Munich Security Conference today. He offered to host an international conference to establish global norms. Hague noted just how far ranging the cyber arena has become, touching most aspects of […]

Leviathan in the Levant

By Alexandros Petersen

The recent discovery of the Leviathan natural gas field off the coast of Israel, though not a game changer like shale in terms of global gas supplies, promises to have major implications for the country’s energy security and even the energy balance of the region at large, while setting off competition over other finds in […]

Atlantic Update 2/4/11

By Jason Harmala

As the Munich Security Conference and EU summit are underway, uncertainty in Egypt remains a focal point.

International naval forces unable to stop spread of Somali piracy

By the Economist

From the Economist:  According to the International Maritime Bureau, which posts live data on raids, Somali pirates hold 33 vessels and 758 hostages. In January alone the bureau recorded 35 attacks. The raiders took seven ships and 148 new hostages.