New Atlanticist

Sharp insights and bold ideas from across the Council

From climate change to the China challenge and the contest between democracy and dictatorship, the New Atlanticist is where top experts and policymakers at the Atlantic Council and beyond offer exclusive insight on the most pressing global challenges—and the US role in addressing them alongside allies and partners.

The Council’s flagship section features big ideas, groundbreaking research, lightning-fast expert reactions, in-depth analyses, and thought-provoking commentary to shape public policy.

The Arctic is a place of unusual international cooperation. Can that last?

New Atlanticist Sep 4, 2025

Dispatches from Damascus: The state of Syria’s postwar transition nine months after Assad’s fall

On a recent trip to the Syrian capital, Atlantic Council experts took note of how far the country has come since the Assad regime’s fall and what still needs to happen to secure peace and prosperity.

New Atlanticist Aug 29, 2025

Twenty questions (and expert answers) about the negotiations to end Russia’s war in Ukraine

By Atlantic Council experts

August saw a flurry of diplomatic activity to end Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. As September nears, Atlantic Council experts share their insights on what to expect next.

Conflict Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding

New Atlanticist Aug 28, 2025

Germany wants to double its defense spending. Where should the money go?

By Atlantic Council experts

After decades of Berlin underinvesting in its defense, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has plans to transform the Bundeswehr into Europe’s strongest military.

Defense Policy Europe & Eurasia

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When major global news breaks, the Atlantic Council’s experts have you covered—delivering their sharpest rapid insight and forward-looking analysis direct to your inbox.

Experts React

Dive deep into developing stories, guided by continually updated expert analysis that leaves you better informed about the most pressing global issues behind the headlines.

Markup

Our experts decipher and annotate major speeches and policy documents to break down big ideas and lay them out in plain language.

New Atlanticist

Mar 23, 2021

The Arctic is a place of unusual international cooperation. Can that last?

By Larry Luxner

For decades, Norway’s policy towards neighboring Russia has balanced “between deterrence and reassurance” and combined “firmness and predictability,” says Ine Eriksen Søreide, the country’s minister of foreign affairs. “This policy remains unchanged. But it has become an ever more challenging task in the face of a steadily deteriorating security environment.”

Crisis Management Defense Technologies

New Atlanticist

Mar 23, 2021

Protecting the world’s trans population requires political representation

By Joseph Rojas, Jr.

There is one group of women that has been left behind in conversations about gender-based issues: trans women. Global leaders must change the narrative to advance a trans-inclusive agenda

Human Rights Latin America

New Atlanticist

Mar 23, 2021

Three implications of the US-China confrontation in Anchorage

By Hung Tran

After the meeting in Alaska, sanctions on China's officials, and other key events of the past week, here are three main takeaways.

China Economy & Business

New Atlanticist

Mar 22, 2021

What vaccine nationalism and diplomacy tell us about future pandemics

By Hung Tran

Good news: A growing availability of COVID-19 vaccines has cast a light at the end of the pandemic tunnel. Bad news: The world’s experience so far with COVID-19 vaccines has not been very uplifting.

China Coronavirus

New Atlanticist

Mar 19, 2021

The US just sent China a message in Alaska

By Barry Pavel

This first clash, with perhaps others to follow, is necessary as the Biden team sees it. It was needed to assure allies of the rock-solid US commitment to protect the mutual interests of like-minded democracies against manifold Chinese challenges.

China Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Mar 18, 2021

How to renew the purpose of the US-ROK alliance

By Cheol Hee Park

It is time for the United States and South Korea to revitalize the intrinsic value of their alliance. There are several ways they can do so.

China Korea

Seizing the advantage

Mar 18, 2021

US national defense strategy and the future of foreign military sales

By Charles W. Hooper

Ongoing great-power competition, US efforts to strengthen alliances and partnerships, and the global dominance of the US defense industry will ensure that FMS remains a policy tool of first resort. This being the case, US policymakers need to ensure that it is the most efficient tool that it can be.

Defense Industry Defense Policy

New Atlanticist

Mar 17, 2021

For WTO reform, most roads lead to China. But do the solutions lead away?

By Mark Linscott

As US President Joe Biden moves quickly in his first one hundred days to address key priorities, one issue is crying out for urgent action: the precarious state of the World Trade Organization, which is confronting a variety of immediate and long-term crises.

China Economy & Business

New Atlanticist

Mar 16, 2021

A mom’s guide to coercion and deterrence

By Emma Ashford, Erica Borghard

There’s a silver lining to parenting in a pandemic: It’s an education in the core concepts of international relations, as well as a useful reminder that we’re all operating in a condition of anarchy. Here's a mom’s primer on deterrence, coercion, credibility, and reassurance.

Conflict Crisis Management

Seizing the advantage

Mar 15, 2021

What the US can learn from the UK about strategic reviews

By Peter Watkins, Will Jessett CBE

The Biden administration has begun work on a slew of strategies—including a new National Security Strategy, National Defense Strategy, and Nuclear Posture Review—that will form the framework for its approach to security challenges. There’s a lot that it can learn from the British experience of conducting strategic reviews.

China Defense Industry

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