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.

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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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.

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

New Atlanticist

Apr 8, 2020

Learning on the fly through Cyber 9/12

By Jocelyn Murray, Andrew Milligan, David Mendez, and Puneet Singh

In the rapidly changing climate of cybersecurity today, the field is about far more than technical lessons and education. For our team, Cyber 9/12 opened brand new doors in the cyber policy and strategy space.

Cybersecurity

New Atlanticist

Apr 8, 2020

Massive testing program could hold keys to ending coronavirus crisis

By David A. Wemer

A massive nationwide testing program could help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and could provide a roadmap for rolling back the extensive social distancing measures implemented across the United States and around the world, according to Nobel laureate economist Paul Romer and Dr. Raj Shah, president of The Rockefeller Foundation and former administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Coronavirus Resilience

New Atlanticist

Apr 8, 2020

Slovakia looks towards an end to COVID-19’s painful isolation

By Alena Kudzko

Slovakia now needs to find ways to prepare for a post-COVID-19 world. Borders and national solutions can only provide necessary relief during an emergency. Looking ahead, the country will be tasked with finding ways to resolve the tension between attaining a false sense of security through national measures and walls, on the one hand, and the need to restore economic prosperity, on the other, through common European solutions.

Central Europe Coronavirus

New Atlanticist

Apr 7, 2020

Addressing Hungary’s coronavirus emergency legislation

By Denise Forsthuber and Daniel Fried

Many in Europe and the United States who consider themselves friends of Hungary have struggled over what to do with what can be increasingly interpreted as an authoritarian drift in that country. Hungary was one of the early leaders of Central Europe’s democratic transformation after its overthrow of communist rule in 1989; this is the tradition we would prefer to be celebrating today. Instead, we struggle to find a way forward.

Coronavirus European Union

New Atlanticist

Apr 7, 2020

While he stems the spread of the coronavirus, Orban is spreading the virus of illiberalism.

By András Simonyi

Viktor Orban had the opportunity in the last weeks to choose between becoming a statesman or a general. He opted for the latter. One wishes him well in dealing with the crisis. But this last decision is not really about handling the crisis.

Coronavirus European Union

New Atlanticist

Apr 7, 2020

Panama’s coronavirus response must not affect constitutional order

By Cristina Guevara

The outbreak will have severe economic consequences for Panama, which is experiencing its weakest economic expansion since the global recession of 2009, but the shock does not end there: from a constitutional perspective, there will certainly be implications for a country characterized by corruption, impunity, and inequality.

Coronavirus Economy & Business

New Atlanticist

Apr 7, 2020

Six reasons NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre is important for our future security

By Lauren Speranza

Even as the Alliance continues to focus on its core defense and deterrence efforts—and rightly so—it should not dismiss capabilities like the EADRCC as bureaucratic side projects. Instead, with an eye to the future, transatlantic policymakers should rethink how to empower and reinforce these types of capabilities to meet different types of threats.

Coronavirus Crisis Management

New Atlanticist

Apr 7, 2020

Lessons from Taiwan’s experience with COVID-19

By Chang-Ching Tu

Early intervention, a flexible command structure, a comprehensive epidemic prevention strategy, integrated medical big data, and proactive information disclosure allowed Taiwan—which at its closest point is only eighty-one miles (130 kilometers) away from China and has a very high population density—to record only a few confirmed cases in recent months. There are a number of lessons to be learned from the Taiwanese government’s effective response to COVID-19 that should be shared with other parts of the world fighting the ongoing pandemic.

Coronavirus Taiwan

New Atlanticist

Apr 7, 2020

New British carriers can transform Europe’s NATO naval capabilities

By Michael John Williams

In the wake of economic calamity, now is the perfect time for European militaries to work together to maximize their resources and military readiness. No better opportunity exists than to use HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales as hubs for a European carrier strike group.

Maritime Security NATO

New Atlanticist

Apr 6, 2020

The case for public health sanctions

By Michael Greenwald

Public health sanctions should be deemed just as significant of a national security priority as sanctions against Iran and North Korea. In a globalized world, a territory’s poor public health standards or purposeful concealment of information about pandemic activity is practically an act of war against the rest of the world. As such, it makes sense that this negligence warrants economic sanctions consequences on par with those used to punish terror finance violations.

Coronavirus Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

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