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New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2019

Finland’s elections: Big lessons from a small country?

By Leo Michel

A coalition government led by the Social Democrats, while opposed to seeking NATO membership, is unlikely to change current Finnish policy of keeping the option open.

Elections NATO

UkraineAlert

Apr 16, 2019

Three predictions for Ukraine’s presidential run-off

By Brian Mefford

Voters knew the first round of Ukraine’s presidential election on March 31 was a freebie, but they will make their vote count in the run-off on April 21. It was clear to the public that there would be no candidate who would receive 50 percent in round one, so Ukrainians were able to vote their […]

Elections Ukraine

IranSource

Apr 16, 2019

Will Canada also designate the IRGC as a foreign terrorist entity?

By Younes Zangiabadi

Following the Trump administration’s decision to label Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist entity, renewed pressure is likely from members of the Conservative party and other Iran hawks in Canada for the government of Justin Trudeau to follow suit.

Iran United States and Canada

UkraineAlert

Apr 16, 2019

Is Zelenskiy really the Kremlin’s best hope in Ukraine?

By Peter Dickinson

In the first round of Ukraine’s presidential election, the leading pro-Russian candidate secured 11 percent of the vote. Compare this to 2010 when pro-Kremlin candidate Viktor Yanukovych received 49 percent. This dramatic decline reflects the scale of the damage done to Russian interests in Ukraine by Vladimir Putin’s ongoing war. Russian aggression has alienated millions […]

Conflict Elections

MENASource

Apr 15, 2019

Netanyahu’s fifth term: The end of the two-state solution

By Grace Wermenbol

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s narrow triumph in Israel’s election this past week constitutes a big win for the right and, with Netanyahu’s last-minute pledge to annex the West Bank, a definitive end to any substantive peace process. Netanyahu’s political survival spells the beginning of a newly-emboldened leader who, with the seemingly unconditional backing of the Trump administration, is likely to implement far-reaching policies that pander to his base.

Israel

IranSource

Apr 15, 2019

The Trump administration’s terrorist label is strengthening the IRGC

By Kayhan Barzegar

The recent White House designation of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist group is the latest extension of the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” policy toward Iran. Yet this policy, aimed at containing Iran’s regional role and limiting its advanced missile program, has backfired, strengthening the status of the IRGC in Iranian domestic politics and further legitimizing its regional and missile activities in the view of many Iranians.

Iran

New Atlanticist

Apr 12, 2019

India votes: Your handy guide to elections in the world’s largest democracy

By Roshni Majumdar

Information to stay on top of the election in India.

Elections India

New Atlanticist

Apr 12, 2019

Brussels agreed to Brexit extension to avoid no deal, EU official says

By David A. Wemer

EU official signals that the EU would be open to a compromise that passed the Withdrawal Agreement but changed the political declaration.

Economy & Business European Union

EnergySource

Apr 12, 2019

The clean energy innovation trap: Climate policy is still essential

By Lee Beck

While serving as Franklin D. Roosevelt’s director of the US Office of Scientific Research and Development in 1944, Vannevar Bush wrote: “Basic research is the pacemaker for technological progress.” He championed the idea of a sequential relationship between government-funded research and development (R&D) and innovation. In his view, the government provides funding for basic research, […]

Energy Transitions Renewables & Advanced Energy

EnergySource

Apr 11, 2019

Why the massive floating bomb in the Red Sea needs urgent attention

By Dr. Ian Ralby, Dr. David Soud, and Rohini Ralby

A floating storage and offloading (FSO) terminal less than five miles off the coast of Yemen has turned into a massive bomb—capable of explosion due to its contents and lack of maintenance. The risk of explosion increases by the day, and if that were to happen, not only would it damage or sink any ships […]

Middle East Oil and Gas