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.

Energizing Ties in the Eastern Mediterranean

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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New Atlanticist

Aug 25, 2016

Energizing Ties in the Eastern Mediterranean

By Gina Cohen

Offshore natural gas discoveries in the Eastern Mediterranean have created critical opportunities for cooperation among countries in the region, especially Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Turkey. Of these five countries, Cyprus and Israel have discovered more gas than either can consume over the next thirty years. Turkey and Jordan have no indigenous gas and need […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

New Atlanticist

Aug 24, 2016

Colombia: On the Brink of Peace

By Andrea Saldarriaga Jiménez

Colombia is at the brink of a historical moment. With the conclusion of peace negotiations in Havana on August 24, the country is on the verge of signing an accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Important steps must be taken before Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and FARC leader Rodrigo Londoño, known […]

Colombia

New Atlanticist

Aug 24, 2016

Making Sense of Turkey’s Intervention in Syria

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Turkish-backed Syrian rebels on August 24 seized an Islamic State stronghold in Syria. The military operation marks a significant escalation of Turkey’s role in the war against the Islamic State and comes days after the Turkish government vowed to “cleanse” its borders of the militants. Aaron Stein and Faysal Itani, both senior resident fellows in […]

Syria Turkey

New Atlanticist

Aug 24, 2016

Winning the Peace in Colombia

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Colombia’s president must focus on shoring up support for peace and reintegration, says Atlantic Council’s Peter Schechter On the brink of ending Latin America’s longest-running armed conflict, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos must now make a concerted effort to convince Colombians that the peace deal he struck with the leftist guerrillas is worthy of their […]

Colombia

New Atlanticist

Aug 23, 2016

Ukraine at Twenty-Five

By John E. Herbst, Steven Pifer, and William Taylor

Twenty-five years ago, after seventy years of Soviet dominance and over three hundred years of rule by Russia, Ukraine declared its independence. This occurred after a national referendum in which over 90 percent of Ukraine’s voters chose independence. Every part of the country, including Crimea—which at that time had a population that was over 60 […]

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Aug 19, 2016

#ThisFlag’s Pastor Evan Mawarire Condemns Continued Crackdown in Zimbabwe

By Julian Wyss and Chloë McGrath

“If we cannot cause the politician to change, then we must inspire the citizen to be bold,” said Pastor Evan Mawarire, founder of Zimbabwe’s #ThisFlag movement, at the Atlantic Council on Wednesday, August 17. Mawarire gave his remarks draped in a Zimbabwean flag, the symbol of the movement. “We are rising up to say that […]

South & Central Africa

New Atlanticist

Aug 18, 2016

Two Surprising Proposals for Peace in the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

By Matthew J. Bryza

It has been a long time since I have sensed any cause for optimism about the prospects of a political settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Indeed, Armenia and Azerbaijan nearly resumed full-scale war in April, when their troops clashed along the line of contact with a level of ferocity unprecedented during the twenty-two years since […]

Russia The Caucasus

New Atlanticist

Aug 17, 2016

Understanding the Role of Russian Propaganda in the US Election

By Ben Nimmo

It may seem strange, but the Kremlin’s propaganda machine is not backing US Presidential Republican Candidate Donald Trump. It has a bigger goal: Discrediting democracy in the United States. The Kremlin’s main propaganda outlets in the US are the television station RT—formerly Russia Today—and the radio and online outlet Sputnik. Both are headed by Kremlin […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Aug 12, 2016

Dismissal of Putin’s Top Aide Reveals Rifts in Kremlin Security Services

By ANDERS ÅSLUND

On August 12, Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed his long-time chief of staff Sergei Ivanov. Ivanov was the second most important person in the Russian political hierarchy; this is a major change in the Putin government with many implications. Putin replaced Ivanov with Anton Vaino, a former diplomat and head of Putin’s protocol office for […]

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2016

Why Nord Stream II is Not Only Eastern Europe’s Problem

By Sijbren de Jong

In November of 2015 the Council of State in the Netherlands decided that natural gas production in the province of Groningen should be capped at 27 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year. As the region suffers from earthquakes due to natural gas production, the level of such is a delicate topic for the Dutch political […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

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