Content

Issue Brief

Sep 26, 2014

Democratized Destruction: Global Security in the Hacker Era

By James Hasik and Mark Revor

The democratized innovations of today’s hacker era have a dark side: democratized destruction, underwritten by advanced information technologies, and spread by highly empowered individuals with very undemocratic intent. The breadth, pace, diffusion, and potential for concealment of these advances may be creating new vulnerabilities for the same technologically advanced societies that spawned them. Fortunately, the […]

Issue Brief

Aug 29, 2014

NATO’s Cyber Capabilities: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

By Jason Healey and Klara Tothova Jordan

For over a decade, NATO has greatly improved its cyber capabilities. In a new issue brief, “NATO’s Cyber Capabilities: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow,” Jason Healey, director, and Klara Tothova Jordan, assistant director of the Cyber Statecraft Initiative in the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security at the Atlantic Council, argue that there is still much […]

Cybersecurity Security & Defense

Issue Brief

Aug 14, 2014

Why nuclear deterrence still matters to NATO

By Matthew Kroenig and Walter B. Slocombe

Over the past two decades, nuclear weapons have been deemphasized in NATO planning, but this should not be interpreted to mean that the Alliance has abandoned the core principle that a nuclear attack will meet a nuclear response, or that NATO will not retain the necessary means to deliver such a response. In the latest […]

Europe & Eurasia NATO

Issue Brief

Aug 6, 2014

Investment and ingenuity: Overcoming obstacles to doing business in Sub-Saharan Africa

By Aubrey Hruby

New publication outlines lesser-known obstacles to US investment in Africa that will limit US companies’ success if left unaddressed. Africa is no longer the home of small-time deals as companies strike billion-dollar game changers across the continent. With the buzz about “Africa Rising” having gone from the backroom to the boardroom, many multinationals are now […]

Issue Brief

Aug 4, 2014

Morocco’s Emergence as a Gateway to Business in Africa

By J. Peter Pham and Ricardo René Larémont

Morocco’s strong economy and political stability make it an attractive portal into Africa for US investors. Morocco, a bastion of stability on the doorstep of an often-turbulent continent, is a rising economic power. With burgeoning economic and commercial links—across the continent and beyond—and expanding contributions to regional political stability and security, Morocco is an especially […]

Morocco

Issue Brief

Jul 1, 2014

Inside Libya’s wild west

By Valerie Stocker

“Inside Libya’s Wild West” explores Libya’s rarely examined southwestern province of Fezzan and how its porous border, tribal tensions, and lack of coordination with central authorities is emblematic of the Libyan government’s failure to deliver for its citizens.   Authored by independent researcher Valerie Stocker, the brief details the lack of security on Libya’s southwestern […]

Libya

Issue Brief

Jun 27, 2014

Losing Syria and Iraq to jihadists

By Faysal Itani

Jihadists in Iraq and Syria, led by the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS) are capturing cities, energy assets, and military hardware daily. They now control a territory the size of Jordan and are building a state from which they aspire and are increasingly able to attack US regional interests, allies, and the United […]

Iraq Syria

Issue Brief

Jun 16, 2014

Easing US and EU sanctions on Iran

By Iran Task Force

As negotiations resume today in Vienna between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany, the Atlantic Council’s Iran Task Force introduces two papers that outline options for unwinding US and European sanctions against Iran—a key element of any long-term agreement curbing Iran’s nuclear program.  “Easing US Sanctions on Iran,” […]

Iran

Issue Brief

May 29, 2014

No Arab Spring for Algeria

By Mohsin Khan and Karim Mezran

A new Atlantic Council report warns that although the Algerian government has effectively maintained the status quo and avoided its own Arab Spring, it risks future instability if it does not commit to serious political and economic reforms. In “No Arab Spring for Algeria,” Mohsin Khan and Karim Mezran, senior fellows at the Atlantic Council’s […]

North Africa

Issue Brief

May 28, 2014

The challenge of federalism in Yemen

By Rafat Al-Akhali

“The Challenge of Federalism in Yemen,” the latest issue brief from the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, maps key considerations as Yemen embarks on the next stage in its political evolution—the transition from a unitary to federal state system, as outlined by the final agreement from the multistakeholder National Dialogue Conference. […]

Yemen