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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New Atlanticist

Mar 23, 2016

Why Donald Trump is Wrong about NATO

By Robbie Gramer

In an interview with the Washington Post a day before the terrorist attacks in Brussels, Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump unveiled an “unabashedly noninterventionist approach” to America’s role in the world. High on his list of targets was NATO. Trump alleged that the United States’ “allies do nothing,” meaning the United States “can’t afford” to […]

NATO Security & Defense

Bremain vs Brexit

Mar 23, 2016

Brussels Attacks Shift Focus to Migrant Crisis

By Robbie Gramer

The terrorist attacks in Brussels have shaken the European Union to its core and will have long-term consequences for the transatlantic community. Europe’s response to the migrant crisis, which has inundated the continent with more than one million refugees, will be an important factor in addressing this situation. The political fallout from the attacks in […]

Europe & Eurasia Western Europe

Bremain vs Brexit

Mar 23, 2016

Brussels Attacks’ Fallout will be Felt Across Europe

By Lauren Speranza

The March 22 terrorist attacks in Brussels will have three major consequences for Europe’s political landscape. First, it could deal a devastating blow to Europe’s open borders; the Schengen area is the magnum opus of a unified Europe. Following the terrorist attack, authorities shut down major public transport lines between Brussels and its European neighbors. […]

European Union International Organizations

Bremain vs Brexit

Mar 23, 2016

‘We Reap What We Sow’

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Brussels attack the cost of inattention to terrorist sleeper cells, says Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe European governments, and in particular Belgium, are paying a heavy price for having neglected terrorist sleeper cells that have been forming for well more than a decade in their growing, poorly integrated immigrant communities, said Frederick Kempe, President and CEO of […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Mar 23, 2016

ISIS Strikes Brussels: Is This The ‘New Normal’?

By Ashish Kumar Sen

The terrorist attacks in Brussels represent a collective failure of Western intelligence, underscore the challenges radicalized young Muslims pose to Europe and the United States, but most of all are emblematic of what the Atlantic Council’s Barry Pavel describes as a “new normal.” The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the […]

Cybersecurity European Union

New Atlanticist

Mar 22, 2016

Belgium’s 9/11

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Brussels attacks a failure of Western intelligence, says Howard Gutman, former US Ambassador to Belgium The terrorist attacks in Brussels that left at least thirty-six people dead on March 22 represent a failure of US and European intelligence, according to Howard Gutman, a former US Ambassador to Belgium. “Most people have been focusing on Molenbeek […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Mar 22, 2016

Paris Suspect’s Arrest Likely Hastened Attack in Brussels, says former CIA Director Michael Hayden

By David Ensor and Ashish Kumar Sen

Salah Abdeslam’s arrest last week in connection with the Paris attacks likely sped up terrorists’ plans to strike Brussels, according to Michael Hayden, former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and an Atlantic Council board member. With Abdeslam’s arrest following a four-month manhunt, the terrorists likely felt that they were “in a position of either […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Mar 22, 2016

Brussels Bombings Reflect ISIS’ Growing ‘Attack Capability’

By Ashish Kumar Sen

‘When you are dealing with terrorists, absolutely the best defense is a strong offense,’ says Michael Morell, a former Deputy Director of the CIA The bombings in Brussels on March 22 are a reflection of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham’s growing “attack capability” in Europe, according to Michael Morell, a former Deputy Director […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Mar 21, 2016

Will the US Congress Chip Away at the Embargo on Cuba?

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Obama administration has done almost all it can to loosen embargo, now the ball is in Congress’ court, say Atlantic Council analysts US President Barack Obama and his Cuban counterpart, Raúl Castro, agree on at least one thing: the US trade and travel embargo on Cuba has to go. That is easier said than done. […]

Cuba Latin America

New Atlanticist

Mar 21, 2016

It’s Time to Sharpen NATO’s ‘Spearhead’ Force

By Robbie Gramer

Funding issues and decision-making challenges may render obsolete NATO’s “spearhead” force, which was set up in response to Russia’s military aggression along its eastern flank. This is another critical gap for NATO given Russia’s ramped up pressure on Eastern Europe, a move that has many Alliance officials even more worried after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s […]

European Union International Organizations

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