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MENASource

May 9, 2018

A renewed opportunity for a US role in Iraq

By Akeel Abbas

The upcoming Iraqi parliamentary election slated for May 12 is significant for many reasons, most notable are the changes to Iraq’s traditional electoral lists. Although these lists are still largely composed along ethno-sectarian lines—whether Shia, Sunni, or Kurdish—differences over policies figure more prominently, with a shift away from an exclusive focus on identity present in […]

Iraq

New Atlanticist

May 9, 2018

The Phony Stage of a Looming Trade War?

By Marie Kasperek

The US government recently sent a large delegation to China in hopes of averting a looming trade war with a major economic competitor. While the intent of the May 2-4 meetings was laudable, it failed to produce any significant outcomes. Negotiators—including US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, US […]

China

MENASource

May 9, 2018

What can we expect of Iraq’s parliamentary elections?

By MENASource

Iraqis will go to the polls for the first time in four years on May 12. The vote will determine Iraq’s next prime minister at a critical time for the country as it emerges from a three-year war with the Islamic State (ISIS). Will the significant shifts in electoral lists bring about change for the […]

Iraq

New Atlanticist

May 9, 2018

Russia’s 2017 Defense Spending Cut Is Not What It Seems

By Brooks Tigner

BRUSSELS — The May 2 announcement by SIPRI, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, that Russia’s defense budget in 2017 fell by 20 percent made many headlines across the West, with predictions of major fallout for Moscow’s military modernization goals, operations, and tactics and its international influence. However, the reality is far from that scenario […]

NATO Russia

New Atlanticist

May 9, 2018

Iranian Hardliners’ ‘I-Told-You-So’ Moment

By Holly Dagres

Three years ago, Iranians celebrated in the streets of Tehran after a deal was struck between their government and the P5+1 countries to curb Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions on the Islamic Republic. Three years later, there were once again celebrations in Iran after US President Donald J. Trump announced that the […]

Iran

UkraineAlert

May 9, 2018

No Longer a Soldier: Ukraine’s Returned Volunteers Are Embracing Second and Third Careers

By Ruslan Minich

“Finding myself in Kyiv now, I smell blood and diesel from time to time. These triggers will always be there,” says Alina Viatkina, a paramedic for the volunteer Hospitallers Medical Battalion. “But you can’t lose control for three days every time. You are learning how to calm yourself: OK, this is the smell of blood. […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

May 9, 2018

Ukraine’s Least Celebrated Oligarch-Free Institution That You Haven’t Heard Of

By Oksana Bedratenko

As Ukraine’s economy begins to grow modestly, its Central Bank is striving to become an anchor of stability. The country needs to preserve the fragile macroeconomic stability it has achieved and use the upswing in the global economy to conduct reforms and stimulate economic growth. The task, however, still meets formidable obstacles; a number of […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

May 9, 2018

North Korea Releases Three US Prisoners

By Ashish Kumar Sen

US President Donald J. Trump announced in a Twitter post on May 9 that North Korea has released three American prisoners. Trump said the three men, all US citizens of Korean descent, were freed during US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Pyongyang on May 9. Trump tweeted on May 9 that Pompeo was […]

Korea

New Atlanticist

May 9, 2018

We Are Now in Uncharted Territory

By Frederick Kempe

President Trump’s decision today to leave the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) was the most significant foreign policy decision yet for this administration. It is no accident that Trump announced it even as he dispatched Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. These two engagements will do much to define […]

Iran

UkraineAlert

May 9, 2018

Unreality TV: Why the Kremlin’s Lies Stick

By Diane Francis

In 2014, Russian-backed rebels used a Moscow-supplied missile to shoot down Malaysia Airlines flight 17 over eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board. Russian state TV made wild claims such as the passengers were already dead, a Ukrainian fighter jet shot down the plane, and the CIA was behind the plot. Since 2016, Russian […]

Russia Ukraine
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