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MENASource

Jun 13, 2018

The superficial removal of Iranian troops from southern Syria

By Mona Alami

Much has been said in the last week of a possible Israeli-Russian arrangement in Syria aimed at curbing Iranian presence in strategic areas like the country’s southern border with Israel. Contradictory reports of troop movements in Qusayr by Tehran’s proxy, Hezbollah, do not change geopolitical realities: the militant group is there to primarily protect Iranian […]

Iran Syria

UkraineAlert

Jun 13, 2018

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: The Saga of Hanna Solomatina

By Josh Cohen

Hanna Solomatina never set out to be a whistleblower. The former head of Ukraine’s National Agency for Corruption Prevention’s (NACP) Financial Control and Lifestyle Monitoring Department just wanted to use her background in finance and auditing to help the country fight endemic graft. The NACP manages Ukraine’s e-declaration system, which mandates that officials reveal their […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Jun 13, 2018

Macedonia and Greece Settle Twenty-Seven-Year Dispute with a New Name

By Sarah Bedenbaugh

In the midst of a news cycle dominated by the historic summit between the United States and North Korea, one might be forgiven for overlooking the news of another diplomatic triumph. On June 12, the prime ministers of Greece and Macedonia announced that the two countries had reached agreement on a deal to end their […]

European Union Greece

IranSource

Jun 13, 2018

Cracks in Iran-Russia Alliance in Syria Widen as War Winds Down

By Farhad Rezaei

As the Syrian government increasingly consolidates control over its territory after seven years of civil strife, cracks are widening between its key external supporters, Iran and Russia. The issue of Syria’s future has generated a heated debate among political elites in Tehran and in Farsi media over Iran’s continued military presence and how it can […]

Iran Russia

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2018

The Epic Struggle of Crimean Tatars Captured in the Film Mustafa

By Viola Gienger

Crimean Tatars’ unending struggle for freedom has been nothing less than epic, and much of it is represented in the long life of Mustafa Dzhemilev. Finally, a film producer has recognized his story for what it is: a compelling tale of historic sweep featuring a legendary protagonist of distinguished bearing.

Ukraine

EnergySource

Jun 12, 2018

The irony of Italy’s election for energy

By John Roberts

The new Italian government’s declaration that it is reviewing the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project threatens to derail a $40 billion set of projects that will bring Caspian gas to Europe and hand Russia a major victory in the process. What is at stake is the final leg of a complex set of projects referred […]

Geopolitics & Energy Security Italy

New Atlanticist

Jun 12, 2018

Trump-Kim Summit: China and Kim are Winners

By Daniel Fried

The summit between US President Donald J. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore on June 12 was not itself a bad idea. But signing an empty paper is questionable.  Adding a unilateral concession—suspending US-South Korean exercises without even consulting with our allies—smacks of careless frivolity.  Tactical unpredictability can be a tool. Strategic unreliability is […]

Korea United States and Canada

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2018

Ukraine’s Next Reform Challenge May Be the Toughest One Yet

By Olena Halushka and Anastasia Krasnosilska

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) recently made headlines after masterminding a dramatic plot to spare the life of Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko. On May 29, newspapers announced that Babchenko had been assassinated in Kyiv, Ukraine, where he had been living as a dissident Russian journalist. The next day at what many thought was an ordinary SBU […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Jun 12, 2018

Ukraine Takes One Step Forward and Two Steps Back

By Melinda Haring

It’s only been six weeks since I was last in Kyiv, and yet the mood now feels completely different. When I was last in Kyiv, posters advertising rock star Slava Vakarchuk’s Independence Day concert were everywhere and he was the talk of the town. No longer. Now former prime minister and campaigner extraordinaire Yulia Tymoshenko’s […]

Ukraine
TrumpKimBackFeature

New Atlanticist

Jun 12, 2018

Trump-Kim Summit: It’s What Happens Next that Counts

By Ashish Kumar Sen

US President Donald J. Trump’s historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore on June 12 is a diplomatic win for the United States, but whether it is a strategic victory will depend on the implementation of the joint agreement signed by the two leaders, according to Michael Morell, an Atlantic Council board […]

Japan Korea