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MENASource

May 24, 2018

Is Tunisia’s glass half empty or half full?

By Karim Mezran & Erin A. Neale

The recent round of elections in Tunisia is further proof of what has been demonstrated across the region and world: that holding elections is not an elixir, but rather a first step upon which to build a strongly rooted democracy.

Democratic Transitions Elections

UkraineAlert

May 24, 2018

Remembering Roman Kupchinsky on Memorial Day

By Melinda Haring

Of all the stories that I’ve written about Ukraine, none has provoked and continues to provoke choruses of thank yous than this piece I wrote three years ago about the life and legacy of Roman Kupchinsky. Each time I go to Kyiv, I meet another young journalist who Roman quietly mentored. On Monday, as the […]

Ukraine

IranSource

May 24, 2018

Trump’s Plan B for Iran

By Matthew Kroenig

Several years ago, Henry Kissinger famously stated that Iran must decide if it wants to be a country or a cause. On May 21, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo re-articulated this question, offering Iran a sharp choice: to be welcomed back into the community of nations if it abandons its destabilizing security policies or […]

Iran
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and President Donald Trump, May 17, 2018 (photo: NATO)

NATOSource

May 24, 2018

NATO Chief Worried About Fissures Between United States and Europe

By Robbie Gramer, Foreign Policy

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said during a visit to Washington this week he is worried about the significant gaps between the United States and Europe on some of the world’s most important issues, from climate change to America’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement.

Europe & Eurasia NATO

New Atlanticist

May 23, 2018

Congolese Opposition Leaders Join Forces

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Two prominent Congolese presidential hopefuls, speaking at the Atlantic Council in Washington on May 23, announced that they were joining forces against the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s longtime president Joseph Kabila. Moïse Katumbi, who is tipped to win the election—if one is held and if he is allowed to participate—and Félix Tshisekedi, the president […]

New Atlanticist

May 23, 2018

Is Russia Violating the Biological Weapons Convention?

By Lukas Trakimavičius

Russia’s reported use of a chemical weapon against a former Russian spy and his daughter in the United Kingdom in March caused an international uproar that echoes to the present day. The incident raised questions regarding the Kremlin’s ongoing use of chemical weapons. While more than forty years have passed since Moscow signed the Biological […]

Russia

New Atlanticist

May 23, 2018

US Initiative Vital for Calming Israeli-Palestinian Tensions

By Moritz Luetgerath

The death of at least sixty Palestinians during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Gaza border on May 14 was just the latest reminder of a crisis that has gradually worsened in the absence of diplomacy and progress toward improved political and economic conditions in the Palestinian territories. A US-led initiative is needed to […]

Israel Middle East

New Atlanticist

May 23, 2018

Trump’s Plan B for Iran

By Matthew Kroenig

Several years ago, Henry Kissinger famously stated that Iran must decide if it wants to be a country or a cause. On May 21, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo re-articulated this question, offering Iran a sharp choice: to be welcomed back into the community of nations if it abandons its destabilizing security policies or […]

Iran Nuclear Nonproliferation

SyriaSource

May 22, 2018

The Civilian Cost of the Southern Damascus Battle

By Youmna al-Dimashqi

Thousands of civilians trapped in a Palestinian refugee camp south of Damascus are bearing the brunt of a fierce government campaign targeting so-called Islamic State (ISIS) militants holed up in the area. It remains unclear exactly how many civilians are currently caught in middle of the fierce clashes between Syrian government forces and ISIS militants in […]

Syria

UkraineAlert

May 22, 2018

Five Steps Ukraine Should Take Now to Free Their Hostages in Russia

By Josh Cohen

Perhaps no one in Kyiv faces a more difficult task than First Vice-Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Iryna Herashchenko. Herashchenko is Ukraine’s lead negotiator tasked with freeing Ukrainians held captive in the Donbas. The Ukrainian government and Russia’s separatist proxies in eastern Ukraine exchanged nearly 400 prisoners in late 2017—a notable achievement for which Herashchenko […]

Ukraine
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