Content

Issue Brief

Sep 2, 2015

Toward a sustainable peace in the South China Sea

By Wei-Teh Li

This issue brief argues that SCS countries need to work toward a "mutual confidence" and "mutual dependence" end state. In particular, the paper focuses on sharing meteorological data to support humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations, including search and rescue operations, foreign disaster relief goods delivery, and medical care.

China
Indo-Pacific

Issue Brief

Sep 2, 2015

Seizing local opportunities in Syria

By Bassam Barabandi and Faysal Itani

Despite the many external players involved, the Syrian war is ultimately a local conflict. In “Seizing Local Opportunities in Syria,” authors Faysal Itani of the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center and Co-Founder of People Demand Change Bassam Barabandi identify three opportunities on the ground for the United States to develop partnerships with segments of the […]

Syria

Issue Brief

Jul 31, 2015

To vote or not to vote: Examining the disenfranchised in Egypt’s political landscape

By Sarah Sirgany

The postponement of parliamentary elections in Egypt, scheduled for March 2015, marked a setback in the country’s democratic political process. Electoral politics are effectively on hold. Meanwhile, Muslim Brotherhood supporters have adopted a violent confrontational strategy toward the state, secular opposition parties are increasingly ineffectual, and voter fatigue remains a serious dilemma. In “To Vote […]

North Africa

Issue Brief

Jul 13, 2015

Reviving Ukraine’s Private Sector: How US Leadership Can Yield Benefits

By Robert Monyak

Ukraine’s economy is flagging. But a Ukrainian economy, integrated with the rest of Europe and by extension, the world economy, is essential for the country’s political stability and its ability to withstand Russian aggression. While the international community is yet to develop a large-scale macro-economic assistance program on the order of the Marshall Plan, the […]

Ukraine

Issue Brief

Jul 6, 2015

Technology will keep changing everything— and will do it faster

By Banning Garrett

In this report, writer and independent consultant Banning Garrett lays out how these technologies are combining to create new, disruptive breakthroughs with potentially unforeseen second- and third-order effects that will alter the way we live forever.

Technology & Innovation

Issue Brief

Jun 23, 2015

Tunisia: From elected government to effective governance

By Karim Mezran and Lara Talverdian

Tunisia has accomplished significant milestones, from ousting an authoritarian regime in 2011 to ushering in a fully elected government in 2015. Nonetheless, the country is still in a critical phase of its transition, balancing the challenges of governance to address pressing economic and security issues. In their Atlantic Council Issue in Focus, “Tunisia: From Elected […]

Democratic Transitions
North Africa

Issue Brief

May 18, 2015

A transatlantic approach to Europe’s east: relaunching the Eastern Partnership

By Fran Burwell

On May 20-21, 2015, European leaders will gather for the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga, Latvia, to discuss the future of Europe’s East. Given the extreme challenges faced by the countries of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) since the last summit, in Vilnius, Lithuania in 2013, and the cooling of EU relations with several of the […]

Northern Europe

Issue Brief

May 8, 2015

Beyond Camp David: A gradualist strategy to upgrade the US-Gulf security partnership

By Bilal Y. Saab and Barry Pavel

President Barack Obama’s summit meeting with Gulf leaders at Camp David on May 14 will end in failure if the administration does not propose a substantial upgrade in US-Gulf security relations that is as bold and strategically significant as the nuclear agreement–and likely formal deal–with Iran. While the summit will not suddenly eliminate mistrust and […]

Issue Brief

Apr 27, 2015

Reimagining Pakistan’s militia policy

By Yelena Biberman

If ever a turning point seemed inevitable in Pakistan’s militia policy, it was in the aftermath of the Peshawar school massacre in December 2014. Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) killed 152 people, 133 of them children, in the bloodiest terrorist attack in Pakistan’s history. The carnage sparked an unprecedented national dialogue about the costs and contradictions of […]

Arms Control
Conflict

Issue Brief

Apr 27, 2015

Defeating the jihadists in Syria: Competition before confrontation

By Faysal Itani

Since August 2014, the US-led air campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) has successfully inflicted casualties on ISIS and weakened its oil revenues. However, the same efforts have also accelerated the rise of the Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate, and the near-collapse of nationalist rebel forces. In “Defeating the Jihadists in […]

Syria
Terrorism
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