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.

Afghanistan’s Election: The Real Results

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

Stay updated

Explore our unique analysis

Fast Thinking

When major global news breaks, the Atlantic Council’s experts have you covered—delivering their sharpest rapid insight and forward-looking analysis direct to your inbox.

Experts React

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.

Markup

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 7, 2014

Afghanistan’s Election: The Real Results

By James Rupert

Following Afghanistan’s presidential election Saturday, ballots from villages of the Hindu Kush mountains are wobbling down dirt paths toward counting centers, lashed to the backs of donkeys. While we will need some weeks to know the official outcome, in which the top two candidates are likely to face a runoff, we know some key effective […]

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 3, 2014

The Arab Spring and Human Rights: Slow Progress on a Long Road

By New Atlanticist

A thousand days, roughly, after the Arab Spring revolutions swept away three Middle Eastern presidents-for-life and one Brother-Leader, how much has the democratic wave improved basic human rights? The US State Department’s report on human rights for 2013, released in recent weeks, offers us an overview, notably if we compare it to the same report […]

New Atlanticist

Apr 2, 2014

Russia vs. Ukraine: The Cyber Front Unfolds

By Jason Healey

Russia’s battle with Ukraine is being fought partly in cyberspace, where it may have greater room for escalation because nations increasingly accept covert cyber attack as a valid form of international pressure when more traditional options are too violent – or too visible. So far, the Ukraine cyber conflict appears to have pitted the strong […]

Cybersecurity Russia

New Atlanticist

Apr 2, 2014

Can We Ever Move on from the Hostage Crisis?

By Barbara Slavin

After several weeks of consideration, the Barack Obama administration has expressed reservations to Iran about the tentative choice of a middle-aged career diplomat and close associate of President Hassan Rouhani as the country’s next ambassador to the UN. Hamid Aboutalebi, 56, a former Iranian ambassador to Australia, Belgium and Italy who currently serves as Rouhani’s deputy chief of […]

Iran

New Atlanticist

Apr 1, 2014

Use US Gas Exports to Undercut Russia in Europe, Warner Says

By New Atlanticist

US sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Crimea have been ineffective so far and should be backed by further action to deter Russian aggression, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) told an audience at the Atlantic Council. Warner called on the Obama administration to immediately approve licenses for US gas exports to Europe, which he said […]

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 31, 2014

Turkey’s Vote Strengthens Erdoğan For Battles to Come

By Orhan Taner

With more than 98% of the votes counted by midday Monday in the March 30 Turkish municipal elections, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) clearly had won their eighth straight victory in national voting contests (three general election, three local elections, and two referenda) since they first won […]

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Mar 31, 2014

Why Syria is Important

By Frederic C. Hof

Syria and its 23 million people sit in the middle of a neighborhood containing important friends and allies of the United States. It is now entering its fourth year of chaos, bloodshed, starvation, and terror. It is a case study in how governments commit war crimes and crimes against humanity against their own citizenry: the […]

Middle East Syria

New Atlanticist

Mar 31, 2014

Kerry-Lavrov Talks? Fine, But US Must Lead in Real Deterrence to Putin on Ukraine

By James Rupert

Yesterday’s talks between Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov kept hope alive that Ukraine’s fields this spring might be visited by harvesters scything the winter wheat, instead of by Russian tanks and bomb craters. But while Lavrov agreed in Paris that a diplomatic solution to the crisis is needed, the […]

NATO Russia

New Atlanticist

Mar 31, 2014

Benitez on NATO’s Response to Developments in Ukraine

By New Atlanticist

Atlantic Council Senior Fellow Jorge Benitez spoke with DefenseNews on NATO’s response to the situation in Ukraine.

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 31, 2014

Looking at Obama’s Presidency

By New Atlanticist

Council President and CEO Fred Kempe appeared on CSPAN’s Washington Journal this weekend. Kempe talked about President Obama’s trip abroad, during which the president attended the U.S.-European Union Summit in Brussels, met with Pope Francis in Vatican City, and then traveled to Saudi Arabia to meet with King Abdullah. The show started with a conversation […]

Russia Ukraine

Share

Issue briefs and reports