Category: Blogs

Top News: Libya’s Parliament to Open Dialogue With Opposition in UN-Sponsored Talks

By MENASource

The House of Representatives is expected to hold its first talks today with the opposition, starting a UN-brokered dialogue in the town of Ghadames near the Algerian border.

As Winter Nears in Ukraine, Will Moscow Attempt Another Strategic Invasion?

By James Rupert

Continued Attacks Show Kremlin May Be Preparing Drive Toward Crimea, Analysts Say Distracted US and European policymakers may feel grateful that this month’s truce has slowed the Russia-Ukraine war. The Obama administration is seized with the Syria-Iraq crisis and Congress has gone home to campaign for the November 4 election. Europe faces an internal battle […]

EconSource: IMF Commends Jordan’s Economic Performance as Review Concludes

By EconSource

Follow the latest in economic news and developments about the Arab transition countries. 

Obama Thanks Rasmussen for Making NATO Stronger

Today marks the end of Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s term as Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

NATO and Japan Conduct First Ever Joint Counter-Piracy Drill

By NATO

NATO and Japan conducted a joint counter-piracy drill in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday (25 September 2014) to test communications and tactical skills. It was the first such joint naval exercise between the two maritime fleets.

This Week in South Asia: September 20-26

By Elijah Logsdon and Refayat Haque

Commentary from the South Asia Center on the most relevant news from the region, and suggested “must-read” analyses from the week. AfghanistanAfter extensive campaigning, two rounds of voting, and an internationally-supervised recount, Afghanistan’s protracted presidential election finally ended on Saturday in an anticlimactic fifteen-minute ceremony.  Both candidates, Dr. Ashraf Ghani and Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, met […]

Outgoing NATO Chief: Russia Considers Us an Adversary

By David Jackson, USA TODAY

The retiring secretary general of NATO says he is leaving behind a more efficient fighting organization that will have to deal with an increasingly aggressive Russia.

Egypt Raises Stakes for Dissent with Life Sentence

By Sarah El Sirgany

Days after announcing his backing for the US-led regional alliance to fight the Islamic State of Syria and al-Sham (ISIS), President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued a legislative amendment that extends the penalty for receiving funds to commit acts that ‘harm national interests’ and ‘disturb public peace’ to a life sentence. The September 22 amendment is […]

SACEUR Breedlove: NATO Allies Need More Precision Weapons

By Marcus Weisgerber, Defense News

NATO alliance members still do not have enough guided bombs and missiles to conduct a long-lasting battle, the alliance’s top general said Monday.

Is This Obama’s Golden Foreign Policy Moment?

By Barry Pavel

Four Key Lessons for the Rest of the Obama Term President Barack Obama’s tough speech before the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday struck a very different tone from his past foreign policy speeches, which often highlighted the drawdown of US military forces from overseas conflicts. Instead, this time, and before a global audience, President […]