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TillersonFiredFeature

New Atlanticist

Mar 13, 2018

State of Upheaval: Trump Fires Tillerson

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Rex Tillerson is out and Mike Pompeo is in. On March 13, US President Donald J. Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson after a little more than a year on the job. Trump announced in a tweet that he is nominating Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Mike Pompeo as Tillerson’s replacement. The position requires […]

SyriaSource

Mar 12, 2018

The Commune System: A Look at Local PYD Governance in Northeastern Syria

By Dan Wilkofsky

The Democratic Union Party’s (PYD) position is precarious. Though it has made political and territorial gains during the Syrian crisis and tied itself to the United States’ fight against the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) and subsequent stabilization efforts, the PYD is threatened by remaining pockets of ISIS resistance, the threat of a Syrian government […]

Syria

UkraineAlert

Mar 12, 2018

The Truth Behind Ukraine’s Language Policy

By Tetyana Ogarkova

On February 28, Ukraine’s Constitutional Court ruled the bill “On the principles of the state language policy” unconstitutional and rendered it invalid. The law in question, adopted back in 2012 and known as the “Kivalov-Kolesnichenko language law,” granted Russian the status of a “regional language.” It was precisely the abolition of this law by the […]

Ukraine

EnergySource

Mar 12, 2018

Renewable energy marches on in 2017: Europe, the United States, and the global outlook

By Robert F. Ichord, Jr.

As technologies advance, costs fall, and policy support and public acceptance grow, the rapid commercial growth of renewable energy continues to be one of the biggest stories in global energy. As countries continue to transition to a low carbon future in the early years of Paris implementation, evidence suggests that the outlook for renewables’ growth is bright.

Energy & Environment Energy Transitions

New Atlanticist

Mar 12, 2018

A Tribute to Wolfgang Ischinger

By James L. Jones

US Marine Corps retired Gen. James L. Jones, Jr., interim chairman of the Atlantic Council board of directors, delivered this speech on March 1, 2018. Distinguished guests, your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, Ambassador and Mrs. Ischinger. It is a great honor for me to be with you in city of Berlin, which holds such historical significance […]

Germany

SyriaSource

Mar 12, 2018

The Fight Against the Islamic State in Southern Syria amid Israeli-Iranian Escalation

By Abdulrahman al-Masri

In early February, Syrian rebel forces  in southern Syria announced the launch of “the Battle of the Conquerors,” a military campaign reportedly backed by Israel against an affiliate of the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) in the region. This took place days prior to the February 10 confrontation between Israel and Iran, where, in a […]

Syria

New Atlanticist

Mar 12, 2018

Russia Makes a Killing off its Military Support to Assad

By Lama Fakih

Russia’s state-owned arms company has reaped enormous profits from its support to Bashar al-Assad’s government, which is responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Syria. The chief executive officer of Rosoboronexport, Alexander Mikheev, said that in 2017 the company signed contracts in fifty-three countries worth approximately $15 billion. These contracts include new clients in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific […]

Russia Syria

UkraineAlert

Mar 12, 2018

Ukraine’s Six Teams of Reformers to Watch

By Aivaras Abromavičius

Ukraine has changed in recent years. But, as is often the case, it’s two steps forward, one step back. At numerous meetings with international partners and journalists, I’m often asked where the latest positive dynamic in government reforms is and which groups of reformers are likely to produce positive results. Having worked in the government […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Mar 12, 2018

Poroshenko’s Last Chance

By Diane Francis

An Anti-Corruption Court is the capstone that will complete an infrastructure to eliminate Ukraine’s systemic corruption and to attract massive investments.President Petro Poroshenko’s current proposal misses the mark, and fails to meet the criteria stipulated by the International Monetary Fund and the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission. Under Poroshenko’s bill, international experts will play only […]

Ukraine

EnergySource

Mar 12, 2018

Global Energy Center working paper highlights risks of Nord Stream 2

By Global Energy Center

In a new working paper, Global Energy Center Senior Fellow Alan Riley highlights the risks that could stem from the construction of the contentious proposed Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, which would bring gas from Russia to Germany. In the working paper, Dr. Riley emphasizes that the proposed pipeline would have negative implications for European […]

Geopolitics & Energy Security Oil and Gas
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