Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator and associate editor of the Financial Times, believes the West, and particularly the United States, will actually emerge as more dominant financial actors as a result of the ongoing financial crisis.  While somewhat ironic, given that U.S. excesses led to the crisis, he sees the dollar and Euro strengthening their hold on the global economy as investors seek to weather the storm.

David Phillips, an Atlantic Council senior fellow and the author of the Council's recent report "Post-Conflict Georgia," has published an editorial in today's Wall Street Journal entitled "Smart Aid" outlining a plan for economic assistance to that country.

Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, spoke to an audience of Atlantic Council members for the inaugural Global Leadership Series event in New York.  The speech also served as the kickoff for the 79th meeting of the British-North American Committee (BNAC).

Frances G. Burwell, vice president for Transatlantic Programs and Studies at the Atlantic Council, published an op-ed in today's Wall Street Journal entitled "Getting Moscow to Behave."

Shortly after the release of the Atlantic Council’s report, Restoring Georgia’s Sovereignty in Abkhazia, Russia invaded Georgia and war broke out over the breakaway region of South Ossetia. The United States and its European partners were put to the test; Moscow’s recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia not only challenged Georgia’s sovereignty, but by demonstrating its willingness to use military action, Moscow also sent a message about Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations as well as the viability of energy transport projects running from the Caspian, through Georgia, to western markets.

Alex Motyl has written a provocative piece, "Can Europe Survive Germany?" which takes Europe's largest state — in terms of both population and economy — to task for being insufficiently committed to the West's shared principles and asserts that, "If Europe ever dies, Germany will have killed it."

Borut Grgic, an Atlantic Council non-resident senior fellow, published an editorial in The Guardian entitled "Kazakhstan: the perfect partner?" on 30 September.

French and EU President Nicolas Sarkozy issued a call from the floor of the UN yesterday to expand the Security Council and G8.    Declaring that, "The 21st century world cannot be governed with the institutions of the 20th

The Atlantic Council hosted a luncheon with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili at the Union Club in New York City. At a small, single-table sit down lunch, the President discussed his understanding of the circumstances not only facing his country, but the broader region in military, economic and cultural terms.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has staked his and his country’s future on Ukraine’s integration into Euroatlantic institutions, even going so far as to say, at an Atlantic Council luncheon on September 23, that Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity can be preserved only with “international guarantees.”