Atlantic Council blogs

Why Afghanistan’s parliamentary election matters

By Roshni Majumdar

Holding the election is “an important measure of progress that underscores how far Afghanistan’s nascent democracy has come,” said Javid Ahmad, a nonresident fellow with the Atlantic Council's South Asia Center.

State department official sounds warning on Russian, Chinese influence in Central and Eastern Europe

By David A. Wemer

“We must not see it as a foregone conclusion that countries will automatically remain friendly to America,” said A Wess Michell, assistant secretary for the US State Department Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.

Signs of a Spectacular Policy Shift in Iran

By Shahir Shahidsaless

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, supported by religious conservatives, has the last word on major Iranian policy decisions, including relations with the United States. His long-standing position has been “no talks, no relations with America,” especially after US unilateral withdrawal from the nuclear deal in May. But there are signs that this hard line […]

Consequences of the cold shoulder: US refugee policy and Middle East instability

By Seth Hershberger

On October 4, President Trump officially approved a refugee cap of 30,000—an all-time low. In August, despite previously increasing aid to Jordan, the US decided to end all UNRWA funding for Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. This summer, the Supreme Court upheld Trump’s controversial travel ban that affects refugees and immigrants alike. Of the eight countries listed, five are in the Middle East/North Africa.

Gadhafi’s Libya and the importance of not shunning the past

By Karim Mezran

It is now common to hear in the streets of the capital Tripoli and other Libyan cities the wistful sentiment: “I wish we could go back to the golden period of Gadhafi’s rule.”

Rome and Brussels go head to head in budget battle

By Álvaro Morales Salto-Weis

The proposal, which creates a deficit that is more than triple the level desired by the EU, has left investors jittery about the trajectory of the Italian economy.

Quiz: Countdown to Brexit

By Atlantic Council

The United Kingdom has six  months left in the European Union. Do you know the difference between “hard” and “soft” Brexit? Whether you’re Team Barnier or Team Raab, prove that you are the master of Brexit negotiations. Here are seven questions on Europe’s messy divorce.

Church Splits, and Putin Loses Big

By Stephen Blank

Ukraine has just won a tremendous victory by obtaining the right of autocephaly, or the right to constitute the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as fully independent and free of any subservience to Moscow. This victory represents a shattering blow to Vladimir Putin’s pretenses of a Russian world (Russkii Mir) and the entire arcana imperii (Imperial relics) […]

Championing the frontlines of freedom

By Damon Wilson

Russia aims to establish a permanent grey zone between itself and NATO and the EU. But Moscow is learning that the people of the region have a say—and they won’t have it.

TRADE IN ACTION October 18, 2018

By Global Business & Economics Program