Category: Timely Commentary & Analysis

A Twenty-Year Truce Has Brought No Peace in Nagorno-Karabakh

By Sabine Freizer

One of Europe’s Most Persistent Conflicts Simmers on in Ukraine’s Shadow Twenty years after Armenians and Azerbaijanis signed a truce in their war over Nagorno-Karabakh, almost no subsequent progress has been made in settling what is one of Europe’s most persistent remaining conflicts. Instead, especially in the past few years, sniper attacks, shelling and land […]

Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister: Separatists’ Referendum Bid Will Yield No Result

The plan by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine to hold a referendum Sunday on secession amounts to “actions by some isolated groups” that will yield “no result,” Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Danylo Lubkivsky said in an online discussion with the Atlantic Council. “The so-called terrorist referendum, [is] illegal, and of course there are no conditions […]

President Jarba Visits the Council

By The Atlantic Council

On May 8, 2014, the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East hosted President Ahmad Jarba of the Syrian National Coalition and his delegation for a private, off-the-record discussion.

The Future of FATA

“FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas in Pakistan) is often portrayed as an incubator of terror and violence that threatens the entire stability of the region,” stated Faiysal AliKhan speaking at a South Asia Center event on May 8, but a danger exists in discussing a single solution for the region as a whole, given the […]

Iraq’s Post-Election Environment: A Preliminary Assessment

Following Iraq’s April 30 parliamentary elections, the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East hosted a discussion on implications of the latest round of voting on Iraq’s future. Atlantic Council Executive Vice President Damon Wilson moderated a discussion with Ambassador James Jeffrey, the former US envoy to Iraq, and Ambassador Feisal Istrabadi, who was previously […]

The Gulf Rising: Defense Industrialization in Saudi Arabia and the UAE

Dramatic changes in the world of defense, coupled with increasing political, financial, and fiscal pressures in the transatlantic community, have forced some of the most advanced US industrial allies and partners to make tough choices regarding their national defense programs, leaving them either more dependent on the United States or with capability shortages. Facing even […]

The Future of the US-Taiwan Relationship

Signed in 1979, the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) serves as the cornerstone of US-Taiwan relations. It guarantees crucial support for Taiwan’s security, economic prosperity, and democratization from the United States. The Atlantic Council celebrated the thirty-fifth anniversary of the TRA on Capitol Hill with a discussion on the future of the US-Taiwan relationship. Rep. Ed […]

Schissler: The “Transatlantic Link is Under Renovation”

Faced with a coercive Russia, declining defense resources, and additional contingencies in Europe’s east, how can NATO plan, deter against, and form a strategy to deal with these and other challenges? What does the future of NATO look like as it looks to adapt to face the challenges of individual empowerment and other global trends? […]

Policy Priorities for India’s New Government

No matter the outcome of India’s marathon election on May 16, the economy will be a central concern of the incoming government in New Delhi. Speaking at a South Asia Center discussion on May 6, Observer Research Foundation’s Distinguished Fellow C. Raja Mohan, Vice President Samir Saran, and Director Sunjoy Joshi stressed various policy priorities […]

Arms and Influence in the Gulf

By Bilal Y. Saab

Riyadh and Abu Dhabi Get to Work Since the formation of the modern Arab state system in the mid-twentieth century, no Arab country has succeeded in building and sustaining an indigenous national defense industry. Egypt tried hard, but ultimately failed because it lacked the requisite financial and human capital. Under Saddam Hussein, Iraq came closest, […]