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.

European Commission to the United Kingdom: Begin Exit Negotiations Swiftly

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

Jul 19, 2016

European Commission to the United Kingdom: Begin Exit Negotiations Swiftly

By Mitch Hulse

The new British government must quickly begin the process of negotiating the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union in order to alleviate market uncertainty, according to a top European Commission official. “From the European Commission’s viewpoint, we are calling on the British government to come up with a proposal to begin exit negotiations without […]

Elections Europe & Eurasia

New Atlanticist

Jul 18, 2016

Wanted: A Measured Response to Turkey’s Post-Coup Attempt Crackdown

By Ashish Kumar Sen

The United States and Europe must have a measured response to developments in Turkey where a failed coup has been followed by a swift and widespread crackdown by the Turkish government, according to former US and UK officials. “We need to be careful about too much language that could be perceived to be threatening,” said […]

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Jul 17, 2016

The Perils of a Failed Coup in Turkey

By Sabine Freizer

The condemnations came swiftly on the night of the attempted coup. From critics of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s human rights record to Selahattin Demirtaş, the head of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), to Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the consensus was clear: military coups bring misery. The history of […]

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Jul 16, 2016

Energy Implications of Turkey’s Attempted Coup

By John M. Roberts

The Turkish government may have survived an attempted coup on the night of July 15-16, but it is still a country at war—and it is still a country through which around 10.5 percent of the world’s internationally traded oil passes. Nothing can, therefore, be taken for granted when it comes to considering a crucial issue […]

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Jul 15, 2016

From Scandal to Silver Lining: Petrobras’ Offering Opportunity for Brazil’s Energy Sector

By Meghan Rowley

The Lavo Jato corruption investigations, also known as Operation Car Wash, into Petrobras, Brazil’s oil giant, shocked the energy sector and helped fuel one of the country’s worst recessions. Nonetheless, some analysts are optimistic that the industry can open itself up to foreign investors and domestic competition to once again generate prosperity. “The energy industry […]

Brazil Energy & Environment

New Atlanticist

Jul 15, 2016

In France, More Security, But Not at the Expense of Inclusivity

By Ashish Kumar Sen

France must strike a delicate balance between securing its homeland while integrating all communities into French society, and one cannot come at the expense of the other, according to the Atlantic Council’s Damon Wilson. “If France gets this right, it can offer a path forward for all of Europe and much of the West,” said […]

France

New Atlanticist

Jul 15, 2016

Nigeria’s Optimists

By Kelsey Lilley

The International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Nigeria Country Director Sentell Barnes likes to describe Nigeria as a house. “When you see it from the outside, maybe it looks like it’s falling in. But when you see it from the inside, there are things in place where the country is preventing itself…from going off the edge,” said […]

Economy & Business Nigeria

New Atlanticist

Jul 15, 2016

US-Russia Cooperation on Syria Seen as Catalyst for Syrian Conflict Resolution

By Julia Goldman

Reports of newfound military cooperation between Russia and the United States to resolve Syrian conflict are welcomed with caution by Syrian negotiation committees. “The hope is there may be serious cooperation at the highest level to finally address the Syrian situation in a serious way and at the level that is required,” said Bassama Kodmani, […]

International Organizations Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Jul 14, 2016

In Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe Cornered by a Nonviolent Opposition

By TK Spandhla

Zimbabwe’s government has never before had to deal with a nonviolent civil resistance movement as it is currently facing, according to Chloë McGrath, a visiting fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center. The non-partisan nonviolent nature of the protests has “really changed the narrative of the way that protests have worked in Zimbabwe in the […]

Africa South & Central Africa

New Atlanticist

Jul 14, 2016

Deploy the NATO Response Force to Deter Russia

By Ian Brzezinski

At the NATO Summit in Warsaw on July 8 and 9, the Alliance decided to deploy a multinational battalion in each of the following frontline states: Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Lithuania. These forces, totaling some 4,000 personnel, are expected to arrive sometime in 2017. Their mission: to deter Russian aggression. Six to nine months, if […]

NATO Russia

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