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

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

Mar 2, 2014

Putin’s Strategy

By Damon Wilson

President Putin is striking back and playing for keeps in Ukraine. After losing his lever of control over Ukraine when the pliant and dependent former President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia, Putin is seeking to regain his leverage by dismembering Ukraine.

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 2, 2014

Putin’s Risk of Blowback From Ukraine

By Ian Brzezinski

US Should Stress to Russia the Costs it Will Pay at Home Russia’s invasion of Crimea, and the Russian parliament’s authorization for President Vladimir Putin’s to use military force throughout Ukraine, reflects Putin’s longstanding desire to reacquire territory lost through the collapse of the Soviet Union. This incursion violates a treaty Russia signed in 1994 […]

Eastern Europe Russia

New Atlanticist

Mar 2, 2014

What Does Putin Want in Ukraine?

By Rajan Menon

The first thing to be said about the question I’ve posed in the title is that no one truly knows — and you shouldn’t believe anyone who says they do. Even Vladimir Putin is unlikely to have figured out all his moves, or decided what would constitute victory for him in Ukraine, at an acceptable […]

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 1, 2014

US Backs Moldova Against Russian Pressures

By New Atlanticist

Prime Minister Iurie Leancă Visits a Supportive White House The Obama administration continues its show of support for the three ex-Soviet countries that are building closer ties to the European Union against coercive pressures from Russia. Days after President Obama met Georgia’s prime minister – and as Washington works to respond to Russia’s military pressure […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Mar 1, 2014

Ukraine Must Learn from Errors of the Orange Revolution

By Damon Wilson

It is not often that second chances come around in history. But the dramatic events in Kiev have given Ukrainians a second chance to turn their backs decisively on the country’s post-Soviet malaise and instead choose a democratic European future. Though tensions remain high, the Ukrainian parliament’s decision to remove Viktor Yanukovych as president hopefully […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 1, 2014

Brzezinski: US Must Specify Sanctions on Russia Over Crimea

By New Atlanticist

US Debates ‘Business as Usual’ With Russia, Says Council’s Damon Wilson As President Obama warned Russia that “there will be costs” if it pursues an invasion of the Ukrainian region of Crimea, policymakers in Washington are debating whether to sustain or suspend “business as usual” with the Russian government, the Atlantic Council’s Damon Wilson said. […]

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Feb 28, 2014

Obama Warns Russia: “There Will Be Costs for Any Military Intervention in Ukraine”

By New Atlanticist

Here is the text of President Obama’s statement today on developments in Crimea:

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Feb 28, 2014

Realism and Ukraine: Ukraine’s Prospects for the Long Term

By Richard Burt and Lee Feinstein

As a new “Unity Government” gets down to work in Kiev, the factors determining the political and economic trajectory of Ukraine will be determined less by a tug of war between Russia and the West than by the actions and decisions of the leadership that emerges in Ukraine. The key factors will be the ability […]

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Feb 28, 2014

The US Must Act Quickly to Save the Internet

By Klara Tothova Jordan

Europe’s New Defenses Against NSA Spying Will Crimp Prosperity and Security Europe’s loss of trust in the United States over Edward Snowden’s revelations of massive surveillance by the National Security Agency (NSA) is now building into a wave of proposals – for new data protection rules, and for Europe-specific Internet and communications networks – that […]

Cybersecurity Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Feb 28, 2014

Troops’ Seizure of Crimea Airports Signals Russian Intervention

By James Rupert

The fight over Ukraine – whether it will align with the European Union or with Russia – took a worrisome turn last night when unidentified camouflage-uniformed troops seized two strategic airports in Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula on the Black Sea. While Russian military officials issued denials of any responsibility, Atlantic Council analysts and others say Russia […]

Ukraine

Share

Issue briefs and reports