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UkraineAlert

Mar 18, 2019

Why Ukraine should abandon efforts to criminalize illicit enrichment

By Leonid Antonenko

In late February, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine declared the criminal code’s article criminalizing illicit enrichment unconstitutional. The response among activists, independent media, and Western embassies was unanimous: the decision was a massive step back for Ukraine. It undid the small but real progress that the country had made toward prosecuting corrupt officials. However, this […]

Corruption Northern Europe

UkraineAlert

Mar 18, 2019

Bad advice

By Stephen Blank

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko recently advocated building intermediate-range ballistic missiles and cruise missiles to target and presumably use against Russia. No doubt Poroshenko calculated that he might gain a political advantage during the final days of a tough campaign for reelection by adopting this hawkish stance. And he may have also thought it made military […]

Conflict Defense Industry

SyriaSource

Mar 18, 2019

The heavy lift

By Frederic C. Hof

The declared top objective of the Trump administration for Syria is “the enduring defeat of ISIS [ISIL, Daesh, Islamic State].” Presumably this means not only killing the bogus caliphate in its physical and ideological dimensions, but keeping it dead. If the presumption is correct, the administration should prepare itself for a heavy and sustained political, diplomatic, developmental, and military lift in Syria; east of the Euphrates River. There is no sign it is preparing to do so.

Extremism Syria

IranSource

Mar 18, 2019

Iran should reach out to labor leaders, not prosecute them

By Tara Sepehri Far

There’s not much good news to share in Iran as Nowruz, the Iranian new year, approaches. The economic situation that played a role in nationwide protests during December 2017 and January 2018 is still difficult as millions of Iranians struggle to live a decent life. Inflation and perceptions of widespread corruption further fuel popular frustration, […]

Iran

New Atlanticist

Mar 18, 2019

The Silk Road and the Gulf: A new frontier for the RMB

By Michael B. Greenwald

Standing at the crossroads of Eurasia, the Arab Gulf states and broader Middle East are an important link between the economies of East Asia and Western Europe.

China The Gulf

UkraineAlert

Mar 18, 2019

Too little, too late

By Anders Åslund

On November 25, the Russian Coast Guard attacked and illegally seized three Ukrainian naval vessels on international waters in the Black Sea. The twenty-four Ukrainian sailors on board were arrested for having violated Russian territorial waters and jailed in the nineteenth century KGB prison Lefortovo in Moscow. These Ukrainian sailors were on Ukrainian vessels going […]

Conflict European Union

New Atlanticist

Mar 15, 2019

Use Brexit delay to investigate Russian money

By Josh Rudolph

If the British government gets an Article 50 extension, the months ahead should be used to finally get to the truth about the opaque sources of money spent in the 2016 referendum.

Corruption Elections

IranSource

Mar 15, 2019

A photo op in Najaf reveals an Iran that could be

By Borzou Daragahi

As far as photographs go, it’s a rather inartful moment. Three aging men dressed in dark clothes sit in a spartan room with small glasses of heavily-brewed tea and a tissue box resting before them, as they engage in conversation. But to Iranians and Iran-watchers the March 13 meeting marked a historical moment. The image […]

Iran Iraq

EnergySource

Mar 15, 2019

A European view: Europe, Nord Stream 2, and diversification

By Friedbert Pflüger

Preface During his 2019 State of the Union speech, President Donald Trump claimed credit for getting European NATO members to pay an additional $100 billion in military outlays to the alliance by the end of 2020. Similarly, instead of raising the specter of further sanctions on Russia that would impact European allies, the United States […]

Central Europe Eastern Europe

MENASource

Mar 15, 2019

Passage of SJR 7, better late than never

By Nabeel Khoury

The passage of Senate Joint Resolution 7 is a fresh rebuke for the Trump administration, that its support for the Saudi-led war on Yemen is unauthorized, illegal, and an immoral assault on the Yemeni people.

Yemen
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