WASHINGTON—December 17 marks the first anniversary of a desperate act of self-immolation in Tunisia, which sparked a series of uprisings across the Arabic-speaking world, toppling three regimes, threatening to topple at least two others, and prompting several governments to take unprecedented measures to address popular dissatisfaction. But one year on, there is still widespread disagreement [...]

Read the full story

WASHINGTON – The emergence of a “new” European Union, in the wake of a sleepless and tumultuous summit held 20 years after the treaty that led to the creation of the political union and the euro currency, was met with ambivalence in Turkey. The irony of Europe’s perennial “sick man” being the most dynamic actor [...]

Read the full story

WASHINGTON—At first glance, the recent news cycle provides plenty of reasons for skeptics of the Arab Spring to feel vindicated. The killing of Libyan despot Muammar Gaddafi following his capture, and the gruesome display of his body at a meat market in Misrata, expose a disturbing side of a movement that many had been inclined [...]

Read the full story

BRUSSELS—The United States, European Union, United Nations, and NATO may soon be confronted with a new reality in the eastern Mediterranean, one characterized by heightened tensions, possible naval incidents, and the risk of escalation. Competition over what are likely to be enormous oil and gas reserves is a major reason for this new dynamic, but [...]

Read the full story

ROME — According to the newly-released Transatlantic Trends survey, Italy is the European country with the strongest perception of a deterioration of the transatlantic relationship over the last year.  Nevertheless, Italians still largely approve (79%) of U.S. President Barack Obama’s handling of international affairs and believe in greater numbers than in past years that NATO [...]

Read the full story

WASHINGTON — The United Nations’ recent report investigating the deaths of nine Turks when Israel stopped a flotilla trying to break a Gaza blockade has brought an end to a suspenseful episode in Turkish-Israeli relations. But with closure (of a sort) comes an opening (of a sort). We might be nearing one of the greatest [...]

Read the full story

ISTANBUL — When U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Istanbul over the weekend for the fourth meeting of the Libya Contact Group and bilateral meetings with her hosts, she would have sensed the confidence of a new regional power.  Turkey today boasts one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and perhaps the [...]

Read the full story

BRUSSELS — This week, while protests raged in Athens, the government of Prime Minister George Papandreou survived a critical confidence vote in the Greek parliament. The government can now try to impose further austerity measures. European Union finance ministers have also agreed to seek a new round of assistance for Greece, and have put off, [...]

Read the full story

By Alina Inayeh BUCHAREST — Nearly four months after a young Tunisian fruit seller burned himself alive out of despair over the corruption of his country and sparked a popular revolt against autocracy that swept the region, thunderstruck leaders on both sides of the Atlantic are finding their voice again. Last week, U.S. President Barack [...]

Read the full story

ROME — The world was not prepared for the turmoil that followed when citizens in Arab countries launched an unprecedented uprising for freedom and democracy. At the beginning, many countries acted in an improvised and uncoordinated way.  Later on, a coalition led the reaction against Ghaddafi’s excesses in Libya with the UN. The United States, [...]

Read the full story