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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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MENASource

Jul 5, 2018

A hollow victory for Jordanian protesters

By Aaron Magid

A mere eight days after protests against an unpopular tax law rocked the Hashemite Kingdom, Jordanians shot fireworks celebrating the June 7 government announcement to withdraw the legislation. A strong supporter of the austerity measure, Prime Minister Hani al-Mulki submitted his resignation on June 4 following the demonstrators’ calls for his ouster. “And popular will […]

Middle East Rule of Law

New Atlanticist

Jul 5, 2018

NATO Should Invite Macedonia to Join the Alliance

By Sarah Bedenbaugh and Daniel Fried

On June 12, the prime ministers of Greece and Macedonia announced a historic agreement to settle a decades-long quarrel over Macedonia’s name. Leaders from around the world praised the Balkan neighbors for putting aside nationalist disputes. The deal is not yet done, however. Opposition to the agreement is strong in both countries. If the new […]

Greece NATO

NATOSource

Jul 5, 2018

Secretary General Confident NATO Will Next Week Invite Republic of Northern Macedonia to Join Alliance

By Jens Stoltenberg, NATO

Excerpts from Joint press point with Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the Prime Minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Zoran Zaev.

Greece NATO

SyriaSource

Jul 5, 2018

Syria’s Southwest Offensive: A Timeline

By Aisha Han and Shruti Kumar

As the battles narrow in scope, the ongoing offensive and strategy of the Assad regime is to recapture the southwestern region which includes Daraa, Quneitra and parts of Sweida. Daraa is controlled by armed opposition groups with the military support of the United States and Jordan. The region is also one of four allotted de-escalation […]

Middle East

New Atlanticist

Jul 5, 2018

The Gulf’s Soccer Showdown

By Owen Daniels

The World Cup’s knockout rounds are in full swing, and followers of Middle East soccer will now have to root for teams outside the region. Despite some compelling narratives – the dramatic politicization of Egyptian star Mo Salah, Iran’s rags-to-riches goalkeeper saving a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman shrugging off his […]

Saudi Arabia The Gulf

New Atlanticist

Jul 5, 2018

How Europe’s Migration Crisis is Heating Up the Italy-Malta Relationship This Summer

By Matthew Lowell

The recent election of Italy’s new populist government led by the anti-immigration Lega political party and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement has added extra heat to the Mediterranean’s already sweltering summer. Over the past few weeks, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, the head of the Lega party, followed through on his election promise of preventing […]

European Union International Organizations

NATOSource

Jul 5, 2018

Ex-NATO Commander: Trump’s Disdain for US-Led Alliance Leads to ‘New and Dangerous’ Situation

By John Vandiver, Stars and Stripes

Growing doubt about President Donald Trump’s commitment to the U.S.-led NATO alliance

NATO Russia

UkraineAlert

Jul 5, 2018

Poroshenko Should Get an Earful in Brussels, But Not for the Reasons You Expect

By Anna Kyslytska

On July 9, Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko and European Council President Donald Tusk plan to meet at the EU-Ukraine Summit in Brussels to discuss a range of issues. Anticorruption reform will rightfully be at the top of the list, but there’s another issue that the Europeans should raise forcefully. One that escapes the headlines.

European Union International Organizations

EnergySource

Jul 5, 2018

The risks of the Trump Administration’s whiplash policy on Iranian oil

By David Mortlock and Ellen Wald

As the Trump Administration prepares to re-impose nuclear-related sanctions on Iran following the president’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), its treatment of Iranian oil sales could dramatically impact both the United States’ Iran strategy and the global oil market. The administration’s apparent decision to compel buyers […]

Geopolitics & Energy Security Iran

EnergySource

Jul 5, 2018

Finding nature-inspired solutions for energy use design challenges in engineering and architecture

By Peter Dean

A previous blog entry addressed the human role in containing entropy. This post examines real-world examples of addressing design challenges in engineering and architecture. Unfortunately, many engineering solutions to both past and current architectural and industrial design challenges have relied on abundant and cheap energy for their effectiveness. When energy is cheap and plentiful, using […]

Energy Transitions Technology & Innovation