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Yuriko Koike, Japan's Former Minister of Defense | May 25, 2012

China is locked in territorial disputes with its neighbors. ++ China is quarreling with Japan over the Senkaku Islands and with the Philippines over Scarborough Shoal, both of which are far outside of China’s territorial waters. ++ China is dangerously close to declaring the entire South China Sea as its own. ++ Increasing Chinese military activity frightens nearby countries. ++ Unless it embraces multilateral discussions, China’s ever expanding interests in the South China Sea will remain the main cause of instability in East Asia.

Misha Glenny, The Guardian | May 24, 2012

The Balkan economies are expected to contract even more, which will in turn increase the lure of nationalism. ++ In Serbia, an extreme nationalist, Tomislav Nikolic, defeated the incumbent president. ++ The election has the potential to grow into a regional and European problem. ++ Nikolic’s victory, in combination with Hungary’s populism, should be a wake-up call to the EU. ++ The Eurozone crisis could inflame nationalism in the Balkans. ++ If the EU cannot stimulate growth, it risks more than just economic downturn.

Ian Birrell, The Independent | May 23, 2012

Although Afghanistan remains a hotbed of terrorist activity, NATO will quit the country by 2014. ++ This marks an end to a tragic chapter in the Alliance’s history. ++ But little attention has been focused on Mali which suffered a coup just two months ago, resulting in the practice of harsh sharia law and the raising of al-Qaeda flags over buildings. ++ Fighting between Islamist and Nationalist gangs, while clans settle old scores, has become common practice. ++ It will get much worse when people look to Islamic terror groups for stability.

Brendan O'Reilly, Asia Times Online | May 22, 2012

The leaders of China, South Korea and Japan agreed to launch talks to lay down the foundations for a trilateral free-trade agreement (FTA). ++ Together the economies currently constitute 20% of global economic output and are very likely to surpass the EU’s 28% share of total world GDP with the FTA. ++ However, tensions with North Korea pose the greatest threat to continued economic growth, since China remains its main partner, while the US has an incentive to maintain its military presence in South Korea and Japan against China’s interests.

Des Browne and Volker Rühe, Former Defense Ministers | May 18, 2012

The NATO summit in Chicago needs to be about more than just Afghanistan. ++ The Alliance must also respond to defense cuts, troubled relations with Russia, and the lessons from Libya. ++ There are three main areas for action. ++ First, NATO must help create the conditions for a world free of nuclear weapons. ++ Second, the summit is an opportunity for the Alliance to reassure Russia on missile defense while also finding ways to cooperate across a range of issues. ++ Third, NATO must pursue more pooling of defense resources.

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Dr. Daniel Hamilton is the Richard von Weizsäcker Professor and Director of the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Paul H. Nitze …

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Your Opinion

Keynote: A New Generation at "Your Ideas, Your NATO"

Philip Murphy  |  May 25, 2012
Philip Murphy

The US Ambassador to Germany spoke at atlantic-community.org’s event in Berlin about transparency for NATO in the 21st century, how the Atlantic Memo provides a “good solid policy report” on this important issue, and the value of youth engagement in transatlantic relations.

Editorial Team

Insights from the Next Generation: The Presentations

Editorial Team  |  May 25, 2012

At the culmination of atlantic-community.org’s policy workshop competition, the winners Stephanie Baulig, Geoffrey Levin, and …

The Baghdad Talks: Setting the Pieces for the Next Round

Sami Kronenfeld  |  May 23, 2012  | 1 comment

Representatives from the US, Europe, Russia, and China are meeting with their Iranian counterparts to discuss Iran’s nuclear program. …

Missile Defense Moving South is a Well-deserved Setback for Warsaw's Dreams

Marek Swierczynski  |  May 23, 2012

NATO’s Chicago Summit announced the first phase of Ballistic Missile Defense as operational. The news was welcomed in Warsaw, but …

Ilija  Djugumanov

The Balkans on the Transatlantic Radar: Where Are They?

Ilija Djugumanov  |  May 23, 2012

Only a year and a half since the New Strategic Concept was adopted, NATO has many challenges to deal with. As the global situation …

Editorial Team

Moving Forward with Smart Defense

Editorial Team  |  May 22, 2012

The many good ideas from non-shortlisted authors in the third category of our “Your Ideas, Your NATO” competition have been brought …

Responding to "Your Ideas, Your NATO"

Stefanie Babst  |  May 22, 2012

NATO’s Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy appeared at atlantic-community.org’s policy debate in Berlin yesterday …

Your Research

Balazs   Ujvari

Term Paper:
The Changing Rules of Multilateral Development Assistance

Balazs Ujvari  |  May 24, 2012

The established foreign aid paradigm is being challenged by the power shift occurring across …

Term Paper:
Anti-Corruption in Afghanistan and Pakistan: What Works and What Doesn't

Ahmad Rashid Jamal  |  May 18, 2012  | 3 comments

Corruption is a severe problem in many Asian countries, especially in Afghanistan and …

Term Paper:
Return to the Empire

Gökhan Tekir  |  May 11, 2012  | 2 comments

The paper analyzes how the Russian Federation uses energy as a foreign policy instrument. …

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