Politics & Diplomacy

Ethiopia: In the eye of the storm

By Bronwyn Bruton

After overseeing the release on February 13 and 14 of thousands of political challengers to the regime, Ethiopian prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn has resigned amid continuing protests that potentially threaten the survival of the government. (For detailed analysis of those events, read this: https://buff.ly/2GeB15y ) Though in the midst of crisis, Ethiopia is enjoying a moment […]

The post Zuma economic bump will be brief

By Aubrey Hruby

Since Jacob Zuma took office in May 2009, South Africa’s economy has been a story of low-to-no growth, flagrant corruption, and extreme inequality. Indeed, his erratic policies have twice spiraled the economy into recession (in 2009 and 2017), resulting in significant slashes to the country’s credit rating and an overall downgrade of the country’s brand. […]

How to hold elections in Libya

By Emadeddin Muntasser

Since 2011, Libya’s path to democracy has been unclear. The United Nations’ (UN) inability to bring warring factions to the negotiating table has left the country in chaos. While negotiations have failed, the UN is pushing to hold elections in 2018. Given the chaos in the country, however, will the UN overcome the challenges needed […]

Taking Stock of the Transatlantic Relationship After One Year of Trump

By Ellen Scholl

Open-ended questions surrounding US relations with its European allies have direct implications for the ratcheting up of tensions and “managed competition” between the United States and Russia, according to Christine Wormuth, director of the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Center for Resilience. Russia represents a nexus between challenges facing US policy at home and abroad, as […]

Our take on Donald Trump’s first State of the Union

US President Donald J. Trump delivered his first State of the Union in Washington on January 30, 2018. Read the address here. Trump touched on a diverse set of topics. We asked our analysts their thoughts on what the president had to say. Here is their take: ON THE SPEECH Trump said: “As we rebuild […]

#ElectionWatch: Protests Across Russia

By Ben Nimmo, Lukas Andriukaitis, and Nika Aleksejeva

On January 28, supporters of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny took to the streets to call for a boycott of presidential elections.

January 25: experts weigh in seven years later

By MENASource

We asked several Egypt experts where they think Egypt stands seven years after the January 25, 2011 uprising that led to the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak. A common takeaway has been that Egypt is continuing to regress to its pre-2011 days. EconomyIn the aftermath of the 2011 Revolution, the Egyptian economy went into […]