Category: Content Series

Considering a US Protectorate in Syria

By Faysal Itani

On January 18, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson offered some long-awaited clarity on US policy in post-ISIS Syria. As recently as a few weeks ago some observers (including this author) did not believe the United States would stay in Syria at all after defeating the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, or Daesh). Secretary Tillerson presented an […]

Lessons Learned: A Year After the Fall of Aleppo

By Abdullah Almousa

This past December marks one year since Aleppo fell back into regime control following six years of fighting and a bloody aerial bombing campaign. This put an end to the most violent theatre of war in Syria; marked by the departure of those expelled from Aleppo on the last convoy on December 22 to the […]

Ask the General: Steps to Demonstrate an Operational ICBM

By Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Why the United States Must Treat LGBTI Rights as a Foreign Policy Imperative

By Atlantic Council Diversity Initiative

The imposition of US sanctions on the Chechen president responsible for the systematic purge of gay men demonstrates a willingness to take a stand on human rights issues essential for the preservation of US values and the maintenance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) rights as a foreign policy imperative. On December 20, […]

The Kurdish School Curriculum in Syria: A Step Towards Self-Rule?

By Sardar Mlla Drwish

The Kurds in northern Syria have established their own education system in what they call Rojava, unfettered by the central government in Damascus, after taking control of the area following the Syrian regime’s withdrawal. This has been achieved through rolling out a Kurdish curriculum, which has so far been introduced for Kurdish (non-Arab) pupils in […]

Assad’s Political Investments in Reconstruction: Rewarding Regime Loyalists and Allies through Suspicious Deals

By Hosam al-Jablawi

A few months ago, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad delivered a speech to Syrian expatriate businessmen announcing his imminent military victory over “terrorism” thanks to the support of his Russian and Iranian Allies. In his speech, Assad promised loyalists and businessmen a share in reconstruction while stressing that the US, Gulf, and other western companies would have […]

Colombia: One Year After Peace Accord Ratification

By Andrea Saldarriaga Jiménez and Juan Felipe Celia

Read the Publication (PDF) On November 30, 2016, the Colombian Congress ratified the peace accords signed by the government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), setting in motion a series of reforms stipulated in the accords. One year later, how much has implementation of the accords advanced and […]

Whither America

By John Raidt

The United States faces threats from outside its borders, but also from within. The political system that once created a strong, prosperous, and united nation now sows division. This report, written by John Raidt, unpacks how the fuel—money—drives the cartel’s machinations as it interacts with and exploits amplifying forces—legal, structural, media, technological, and social.

Reconstruction Funds Will Not Change Assad’s Behavior in Syria

The promise of foreign reconstruction aid will not induce cooperation from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which is why international efforts to rebuild the war-ravaged country should focus on local solutions, removed from the regime’s sphere of influence, according to an Atlantic Council analyst. “A regime that would rather have gone through what it had to […]

The Digital Single Market

By Global Business and Economics Program

On December 6, 2017, the Atlantic Council’s Global Business and Economics program co-hosted an event with the Bay Area Council Economic Institute in San Francisco, CA. The discussion focused on the progress of the EU’s Digital Single Market (DSM) strategy and its implications for businesses in the United States and the transatlantic digital marketplace. Our […]