Category: Blogs

NATO Publics Reluctant to Provide Military Aid to Allies Under Attack

By Katie Simmons, Bruce Stokes, and Jacob Poushter, Pew Research Center

Going forward, most NATO members are willing to provide economic aid to Ukraine and offer it NATO membership.

At Last, Some Good News for Mexico’s Peña Nieto

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Strengthening of ruling coalition in midterm elections will boost President’s reform agenda, says Atlantic Council’s Schechter Mexico’s June 7 mid-term elections, which unexpectedly strengthened the ruling coalition’s majority in the lower house of Congress, will boost President Enrique Peña Nieto’s efforts to reform the Mexican economy, predicts the Atlantic Council’s Peter Schechter. “The election result […]

Egypt’s Africa Pivot

In a move which would establish the continent’s largest free trade area, Egypt has signed an agreement with twenty-five other African countries to form a “Cape to Cairo” Free Trade Zone. Integrating the three economic zones of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, the Southern African Development Community, and the East African Community, […]

Top News: United States Prepares Plans for More Troops and New Base in Iraq

By MENASource

The United States is expected on Wednesday to announce plans for a new military base in Iraq’s Anbar province and the deployment of around 400 additional US trainers to help Iraqi forces fight the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) and help plan a counterattack to retake Ramadi.

Top News: Police Foil Terrorist Attack at Karnak Temple in Luxor

By EgyptSource

Egypt’s security forces said they foiled a suicide bomb attack at the ancient Karnak temple in the southern city of Luxor on Wednesday.

EconSource: World Bank Says GCC countries Need to Slash Public Spending

By EconSource

The World Bank’s chief economist for the Middle East and North Africa, Shanta Devarajan, said Tuesday that while falling oil prices have led to welcome subsidy reforms in Gulf countries, they urgently need to develop new ways to distribute oil wealth and shrink the public sector.

Turkey’s Parliamentary Elections: The Vote and Beyond

By Eyup Civelek

Turkey held its twenty-fourth parliamentary elections on Sunday June 7, 2015. While most analysts focused on the pivotal role played by the Kurdish-affiliated People’s Democratic Party (HDP) in swaying voters away from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), fewer have focused on the equally critical—and spontaneous—role of Turkish civil society in monitoring the process […]

Free Trade Pact Highlights Egypt’s Pivot Back towards Africa

By J. Peter Pham

On Wednesday, presidents and other leaders representing twenty-six African countries meeting at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh signed an agreement to launch a “Cape to Cairo” free trade zone spanning the length of the continent. The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA), as it will formally be known, will embrace three of Africa’s […]

One Year On: Legislation Under Sisi

By EgyptSource

Since his election, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has issued and amended over 100 decrees. In the absence of a seated parliament Sisi enjoys full legislative power and has issued decrees aiming to address the economic, security, and political issues facing Egypt today.

Obama Again Urges Cameron to Keep NATO Defense Spending Commitment

By BBC

Barack Obama has pressed David Cameron to maintain Britain’s commitment to meeting the Nato target of spending 2% of GDP on defence.