Ashish Kumar Sen

With Brexit Looming, United States Advised to Forge Ties with Germany, the UK   In light of the British decision to leave the European Union, US President Barack Obama and his successor must forge a closer bond with Germany and shore up the “special relationship” with the United Kingdom, said R. Nicholas Burns, an Atlantic Council board director who served as under secretary of state for political affairs in the George W. Bush administration.

Atlantic Council Report Advocates Troop Buildup in Europe in Response to Russian Threat   NATO must respond to threats from Russia by permanently stationing troops in the Baltic States, Poland, and the Black Sea region, according to a new Atlantic Council report.

EU Needs a ‘Huge Transformation’   We asked our experts to tell us what the European Union needs to do differently in light of the referendum. This is what they had to say: Andrea Montanino is the director of the Global Business and Economics Program at the Atlantic Council. He was formerly executive director of the International Monetary Fund representing the governments of Italy, Albania, Greece, Malta, Portugal, and San Marino. It is clear that the European Union needs a huge transformation, and it especially needs a group of leaders that gives it a new direction. I would like to see on the day after the referendum the leaders of EU member states meeting in Brussels and taking a number of decisions that will deepen the union. 

Post-Brexit, Germany ‘Has to be Very Careful’ The EU has to recognize that it has many issues that it needs to face. There is much dissatisfaction in many countries with policies coming out of Brussels and with the level of transparency with which Brussels operates.

Brexit: An ‘Earthquake’ in London A vote by the British to leave the European Union should not be viewed as an isolated incident. It should, instead, set off alarm bells about the future of the European project.

US Seeks Renewed NATO Pledges to Afghanistan   NATO’s Warsaw summit in July and a European Union conference in Brussels in October must provide clear commitments to Afghanistan in order to boost the prospects of peace in that country, a senior Obama administration official said at the Atlantic Council on June 21.

Colombia Stands on the Brink of Peace  On the cusp of signing a bilateral ceasefire that will end Latin America’s longest running war, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos must ensure that the peace deal with leftist rebels is implemented to the letter—particularly ensuring justice for the victims—and shore up support for the agreement among Colombian voters, according to Latin America analysts at the Atlantic Council.

Brexit or Bremain, What the EU Desperately Needs is Reform   British voters will take part in a referendum on June 23 to decide whether the United Kingdom should remain in the European Union. Latest polls show a close race. For months, proponents and opponents of the so-called Brexit have made their case to the British public.

Ben Rhodes: Tearing Up Iran Nuke Deal Will Precipitate a Crisis in the Middle East   The next US president would precipitate a crisis in the Middle East and alienate America’s allies if he or she decides to tear up the nuclear deal with Iran, a senior White House official said at the Atlantic Council on June 16. “The way in which the Iran deal was structured creates enormous disincentives for an incoming president to tear it up,” said Ben Rhodes, deputy national security advisor for strategic communications.

Is Libya’s Breakup Imminent?   The battle to drive the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham out of the Libyan city of Sirte may have the unintended consequence of putting in proximity forces loyal to the UN-backed unity government in the west and a rival general in the east. A clash between these factions would certainly destabilize Libya, but it could also split the North African nation in half, said the Atlantic Council’s Karim Mezran.

Former US Officials to White House: In Orlando Response, Don’t Get Distracted by Campaign Rhetoric As a lone gunman’s deadly rampage at an Orlando nightclub in the early hours of June 12—the worst mass shooting in modern US history—dominated the presidential campaign rhetoric, former US officials advised the Obama administration to remain above the fray. “I wouldn’t react to the political campaigns’ rhetoric,” said Frances Fragos Townsend, a former homeland security advisor to then-US President George W. Bush.

Keep Door Open to Russia: Breedlove  It is important not to close the door to Russia, which is led by a man whose number one goal is to create rifts within NATO and the European Union, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander for Europe, Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, said at the Atlantic Council on June 8.

NATO Enlargement Seen About Filling Gaps   Montenegro’s defense minister, Milica Pejanović-Đurišić, has some advice for countries aspiring to join NATO: explain to partners and friends the importance of alliance membership from a political standpoint. Pejanović-Đurišić is well positioned to give such advice. In December 2015, NATO extended an invitation to Montenegro to begin accession talks and become the twenty-ninth member of the alliance.

What the UN Gets Wrong About Rights in Eritrea A UN panel’s expected conclusion that crimes against humanity are being committed in Eritrea would be legally indefensible because of the flawed methodology in the compilation of the report and would further erode the credibility of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in Africa, said the Atlantic Council’s Bronwyn Bruton.

Atlantic Council Honors Champions of Freedom   Recipients of the Atlantic Council’s Freedom Awards on June 3 delivered impassioned pleas to safeguard the freedoms they have dedicated their lives to protect.

Polish Foreign Minister Seeks ‘Substantial’ NATO Buildup on Europe’s Eastern Flank   NATO should undertake a “substantial” military buildup in Poland and the Baltic States to address the challenge posed by an “aggressive” and “revisionist” Russia, Poland’s Foreign Minister, Witold Waszczykowski, said on June 2. “NATO’s keyword should be deterrence…not as an offensive measure, but rather as the most effective and, in fact, only instrument of peacebuilding,” he said.