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

Aug 9, 2018

The Saudi Arabia-Canada Feud, Explained

By David Wemer

Saudi Arabia and Canada have found themselves in the middle of a diplomatic crisis, which threatens to end all diplomatic and economic contacts between the two countries. Saudi Arabia expelled the Canadian Ambassador in Riyadh on August 6, after Canada’s Foreign Minister, Chrystia Freeland, called for the release of Saudi human rights activist Samar Badawi […]

Saudi Arabia United States and Canada

New Atlanticist

Aug 8, 2018

Russia Braces For ‘Crushing’ New Sanctions Over Electoral Interference

By David Wemer

On August 8, the Russian newspaper Kommersant published a draft of what they claim is the new Defending American Security from Kremlin Aggression Act (DASKAA), a bill US senators introduced on August 2 that aims to punish Moscow for its interference in American elections, its continued support for the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, and […]

Russia

New Atlanticist

Aug 8, 2018

The Russia-Georgia War: Not Frozen and Not Forgotten

By Alexandra Hall Hall

On the tenth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Georgia, it is essential not to forget the ongoing human, security, political, and economic impact both of that war, and of Georgia’s underlying unresolved conflicts with the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Nothing brings home the cost of war better than meeting some of its […]

Russia The Caucasus

New Atlanticist

Aug 8, 2018

Turkey and Black Sea Security: Ten Years After the War in Georgia

By Dimitar Bechev

The 2008 war between Georgia and Russia was a critical test for Turkey. It highlighted Ankara’s delicate balancing act between the West and Russia, one that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is still pursuing today. The conflict presented a formidable challenge. Georgia was not just another neighbor for Turkey – the two countries had built robust […]

Russia The Caucasus

New Atlanticist

Aug 7, 2018

A Decade After War With Russia, Georgia Continues its Path Westward

By Mary Trichka and Margaret Meiman

The Russo-Georgian War lasted a brief five days, but its impact is still felt deeply in Georgia and throughout the region. Ten years later, Russia exerts ever-growing influence on Georgia, occupying one-fifth of the country’s territory – the breakaway republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia – and using this position to project its power throughout […]

Russia The Caucasus

New Atlanticist

Aug 7, 2018

Britain Will Remain A Global Power After Brexit, UK Defense Minister Says

By David Wemer

“Brexit is Britain’s moment to look up, be more ambitious, and redefine our place in the world,” United Kingdom Secretary of State for Defence, Gavin Williamson, said on August 7. Speaking at the Atlantic Council in Washington, Williamson sought to assure those “worrying about Brexit and what role Britain will play in the world,” that […]

United Kingdom

New Atlanticist

Aug 7, 2018

Enlarge NATO to Ensure Peace in Europe

By Damon Wilson and David J. Kramer

Exactly ten years ago, Russian forces attacked Georgia, bringing to a violent end a nearly two-decade long advance of a Europe whole and free. In the wake of NATO’s failure to agree on how to advance the membership aspirations of Georgia and Ukraine at its Bucharest Summit months earlier, Moscow acted to block those prospects […]

Russia The Balkans

New Atlanticist

Aug 7, 2018

Ankara and Washington Reach a Boiling Point over American Pastor Imprisonment

By David Wemer

This piece is part of a two part series on current US-Turkey relations. See the first piece here. Relations between Turkey and the United States may have hit a new low after the US Department of the Treasury sanctioned two Turkish government officials in response to the imprisonment of an American pastor in Turkey on […]

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Aug 7, 2018

US-Turkey relations: From alliance to crisis

By Defne Arslan, Pinar Dost, and Grady Wilson

The historically strong US-Turkey relationship has been tested in recent years by a seemingly never-ending series of disagreements and crises. After each development, commentators claim again and again that US-Turkey relations have never been so bad.

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Aug 6, 2018

Non-Tariff Barriers: Can the EU and the United States Make Progress on Trade?

By Barbara C. Matthews and Earl Anthony Wayne

On July 25, the European Union and the United States took an important step in de-escalating the threat of a trade war by agreeing to not only begin walking back US tariffs on European steel and aluminum and Europe’s retaliatory measures, but also by starting to discuss an ambitious forward-looking agenda for reducing trade barriers […]

Economy & Business European Union

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