Category: Event Recap

Defense Cooperation in the Arabian Gulf

In his commencement address to West Point graduates today, President Obama described his vision of a foreign policy that is founded not only upon a strong military but also by a web of alliances and partnerships that better position the United States as a global leader. Allies and partners, like those of the GCC countries, […]

The Challenge of Federalism in Yemen

As Yemen’s Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) begins to work out the details of the country’s proposed federal system, the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East launched “The Challenge of Federalism in Yemen,” an issue brief by nonresident fellow Rafat Al-Akhali. Al-Akhali traveled from Sana’a, Yemen to Washington for a discussion on May […]

Missile Defense Agency: A Retrospective

In a unique and unprecedented event, the last three former directors of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA)—Lt. Gen. Ronald T. Kadish, USAF (Ret.), LTG Patrick O’Reilly, USA (Ret.), and Lt. Gen. Henry A. Obering, USAF (Ret.)—discussed the impact MDA has had in helping the US military acquire the necessary missile defense capabilities to compete in […]

Transatlantic Missile Defense Architecture

By Cassandra Lewis

In the run up to the September NATO Summit in Wales, leading experts addressed the transatlantic missile defense structure and its future. The panel discussion featured Robert Bell of the US mission to NATO, Alexis Morel of Thales, and Kurt Volker of the McCain Institute for International Leadership. The panel was moderated by John Rood […]

How Social Entrepreneurship is Transforming Colombian Education

Social entrepreneurship, by essence, is local. Many of the world’s biggest challenges require specific, local antidotes to maladies that affect communities across the globe. In Latin America, a new class of social entrepreneurs are matching their skills to common societal needs and creating positive, long-lasting, and concrete results.  

Winnefeld Delivers Opening Keynote at 2014 Missile Defense Conference

James A. Winnefeld, Jr., Vice Chairman, US Joint Chiefs of Staff began his keynote remarks at the Atlantic Council’s annual missile defense by examining two key terms: strategy and deterrence. Winnefeld stated that he and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Martin Dempsey, define strategy as linking and balancing ends, ways, and means and then […]

A Discussion with the Angola Open Policy Initiative

The Southern African nation of Angola has made commendable economic progress since emerging from a twenty-seven-year long civil war in 2002. Rich in natural resources, it has become Africa’s second largest oil producer and has enjoyed a decade of strong GDP growth while gaining in global importance—in 2009, the United States identified Angola as one […]

The Collapse of the Israeli-Palestinian Peace Talks: A Review by Amb. Michael Oren

“Israel cannot return to 1967 lines,” Ambassador-in-Residence Michael Oren cautioned on Thursday. “From a security standpoint, it’s very problematic. ’67 borders is the Western Wall, it’s central Jerusalem.”

The Role of Service Contractors in the United States and Around the World

Steven. F. Gaffney, chairman and CEO of DynCorp International, gave an address entitled “The Role of Service Contractors in the United States and Around the World” as part of the Atlantic Council Captains of Industry series.

Atlantic Council Launches Global Trade and the Americas Initiative

On May 22, the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center, together with the Global Business and Economics Program, launched the Global Trade and the Americas initiative with a conversation focused on global trade negotiations and prospects for deepening US and European commercial engagement with Latin America at a private, off the record roundtable in the midst […]