New Atlanticist

For Macron, the Hard Part Starts Now

Emmanuel Macron’s election as the next president of France marks a defeat for Russian President Vladimir Putin and a setback for the wave of populism that has swept the West, but France is not out of the woods just yet. “Vladimir Putin emerges as a loser,” said Daniel Fried, a former US assistant secretary of […]

Macron’s Victory is Welcome News for Saudi Arabia and Qatar

By Giorgio Cafiero and Theodore Karasik

Emmanuel Macron’s election as the next president of France is positive news for Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Among the four leading candidates in the presidential election, Riyadh and Doha most favored Macron, whose foreign policy positions are pro-European Union (EU) and who is expected to continue Paris’ overall approach to international affairs. More specifically, Macron’s […]

The West’s Future Depends on the Political Center

By Stanley Sloan

Later in May, US President Donald J. Trump is scheduled to attend his first NATO summit. The summit will take place at a time when most NATO and European Union (EU) leaders are breathing a sigh of relief with centrist Emmanuel Macron’s defeat of the far-right Marine Le Pen in France’s presidential election on May […]

President Macron: Finally, Some Good News for the EU

By Julien Touati

Emmanuel Macron’s  large victory is historic by many standards. The newly-elected president of France won the election on his first attempt (like Valery Giscard d’Estaing in 1974 and François Hollande in 2012) but, unlike any other French president since 1958, he did so without any longstanding political experience or the backing of a mainstream party; […]

Maltese Candidates Have Different Views of European Union

By Matthew Lowell

Maltese voters face a choice in elections on June 3 between two prime ministerial candidates who have starkly different views on the path ahead for the European Union (EU) and their country’s role in a future EU army. On the question of whether the solution for the EU is more or less Europe, Maltese Prime […]

Election Will Shape France’s Relationship with Africa

By Mayecor Sar

To say that Africa is not a foreign policy priority in the French election would be an understatement. This is understandable, however, considering the dire state of France’s economy and the many international challenges the country faces. But because of France’s historically special relationship with its former colonies, would-be presidents can never completely disregard the […]

Russia’s De-Escalation Zone Plan for Syria is Doomed

The proposal for de-escalation zones in Syria, which will enter into force at midnight on May 5, is unlikely to be effective in the long term, according to an Atlantic Council analyst. “Maybe” the agreement will temporarily have a demonstrable effect on lowering the number of civilian deaths in Syria, said Faysal Itani, a senior […]

To Secure the United States’ Southern Border, Look to Central America

By Ashish Kumar Sen

US Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly says improvement in conditions will reduce unauthorized migration US Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly has some advice for people thinking of crossing over illegally into the United States: don’t bother coming. “The message is, ‘If you get here—if you pay the traffickers you will probably get here—you […]

Making the Three Seas Initiative a Priority for Trump

In light of Russia’s use of energy as a weapon in Europe, the Three Seas Initiative—a project designed to unite the region of Europe between the Baltic, Adriatic, and Black Seas through energy infrastructure—should be a strategic priority for the new US administration, retired Marine Corps Gen. James L. Jones, chairman of the Atlantic Council’s […]

Will He, Won’t He? Awaiting Trump’s Decision on Paris Deal

By Ellen Scholl

The world continues to wait nervously for US President Donald J. Trump’s promised decision, one that could have global implications for decades to come—will the United States pull out of the Paris climate agreement? Agreed to by 197 parties in 2015 and entered into force one year later, the Paris agreement set forth the first […]