New Atlanticist

Missing Flight 370 Has Israel on High Alert

Atlantic Council Ambassador-in-Residence Michael Oren appeared on Piers Morgan Live to talk about how the search for missing flight 370 has put Israel on high alert. One theory on the disappearance is that the plane was hijacked to be used in a 9/11-style attack. As Oren points out to guest host Bill Wier, Israel’s precarious […]

Putin Declares Crimea Annexed; So How Best Now to Fight for Ukraine?

By James Rupert

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s declared annexation of Crimea today changes the power struggle in Eastern Europe. The United States and its allies, which have been warning against that step, immediately must focus on the wider dangers of Putin’s likely next move. Putin aims to reclaim greater Russian influence – and if possible, control – over […]

Russia’s Foreign Policy Reflects Domestic Dysfunction

By Barbara Slavin

Vladimir Putin appears well on his way to reclaiming the Crimea for Russia, restoring the peninsula to a status forfeited by Nikita Khrushchev’s Soviet Union in 1954. But this territorial achievement may provide only temporary distraction for Russia’s 140 million people who have seen their quality of life deteriorate dramatically since Putin took power in 1999. […]

Analysts: As Crimea Vote Is Declared, Putin Is Reaching for Lands Beyond

By New Atlanticist

Sunday’s referendum in Crimea produced the expected result. That vote – and steps by the Russian parliament, the Duma – lay the groundwork not only for Russia’s annexation by Crimea, but for a more formal takeover of lands beyond, say Atlantic Council Senior Fellow Adrian Karatnycky and other analysts. Like many, Karatnycky  begins by noting […]

US Issues Targeted Sanctions on Russian Elites

The US and EU rejected Crimea’s referendum Sunday, issuing statements and new sanctions outlining the West’s overwhelming disapproval of Russian activities in Crimea.

Lessons From Ukraine’s Crisis

By Rajan Menon

The referendum that occurred on Sunday in Crimea was a flagrant violation of Ukraine’s constitution. And it was held amidst a Russian military occupation supposedly mounted to defend ethnic Russians on the peninsula, even though there was no evidence that they were under attack.

Beyond the Crisis, Hope for Ukraine

By James Rupert

An Unlikely ‘Hero’ Voices Frustrations and Optimism of the Maidan Three weeks after many Ukrainians acclaimed Volodymyr Parasiuk a hero for helping to oust his country’s corrupt president, the 26-year-old computer enthusiast seems to reflect two changes that might eventually help a more democratic and stable Ukraine emerge from its crisis. The four-month mass uprising […]

Putin’s Foreign Policy: The Case of Africa

By New Atlanticist

Russia Has Reversed Its Yeltsin-Era Retreat from Sub-Saharan Africa In the two weeks since Russian President Vladimir Putin surprised governments and publics by invading Ukraine, writers have launched a veritable industry of analysis that has included his worldview, his KGB roots, his penchant for shirtless photos, and his foreign policy ambitions. Non-stop coverage of the […]

In Ukraine, the End of Act One

By R. Nicholas Burns

Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is nearing the end of Act One with this weekend’s trumped-up Crimean referendum for reunification with mother Russia. As we look ahead to Acts Two and Three, what have we learned so far?

Convene Major Transatlantic Powers to Stop Russia

By Richard Burt and Lee Feinstein

It now seems almost certain that this weekend’s referendum by the Crimean parliament on joining the Russian Federation will pass. There is also a real threat that Russian president Vladimir Putin will seek to follow up that referendum by announcing Russian plans to incorporate Crimea into the Russian Federation. These moves would represent not only […]