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.

What Will a New Army Chief Mean for Pakistan and the Neighborhood?

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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Our experts decipher and annotate major speeches and policy documents to break down big ideas and lay them out in plain language.

New Atlanticist

Nov 4, 2013

What Will a New Army Chief Mean for Pakistan and the Neighborhood?

By Shuja Nawaz

Since it was announced last month that Pakistan’s army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, would be retiring, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has kept the country dangling on his choice, creating a new parlor game for the chattering classes in the process. General Kayani has been characteristically mum, except for an unusual press release that said he was […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Nov 1, 2013

Eurozone at the Crossroads

By Jordan Smith

For decades, European Union nations have walked a constitutional tightrope, refusing to make the ultimate choice between their core sovereignty and the merging of powers necessary to construct a viable European polity. The recent financial hurricane unleashed by the dangerous combination of poor regulation, too much debt, and weak leadership has brought Europe’s constitutional balancing […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Nov 1, 2013

A New Honeymoon for the United States and Pakistan?

By Shuja Nawaz

A relationship that has been described as a rollercoaster ride or tagged as a deal between “frenemies” appears to have been rejuvenated with a fresh infusion of bonhomie. Some might describe it similar to the Liz Taylor-Richard Burton marriages: shouting and screaming matches followed by a quiet make-up. Is there another honeymoon in the making […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Nov 1, 2013

Save the Children of Syria

By Barbara Slavin

While the United States, Russia, and the other parties interested in the civil war in Syria haggle over the ground rules for admission to a Geneva peace conference, Syrian children are succumbing to polio and other horrible diseases and losing precious years of schooling.

Syria

New Atlanticist

Nov 1, 2013

Three Reasons Turks Chose Chinese Missiles

By Ross Wilson

After long deliberation, Turkey announced September 26 its selection of China’s FD-2000 air and missile defense system over competitors from the United States (Patriot), Europe (SAMP/T), and Russia (S-400).

Missile Defense Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Oct 31, 2013

Georgian Presidential Election Sets Precedent for Progress

By Laura Linderman

Georgia’s October 27 presidential polls were historic and an important step toward strengthening democracy. Outgoing president Saakashvili was replaced through the ballot box by the ruling Georgian Dream coalition’s candidate, Giorgi Margvelashvili. In a remarkably calm and drama-free election, with the lowest voter turnout in a decade at 46.6 percent, Margvelashvili won with 62.11 percent […]

The Caucasus

New Atlanticist

Oct 30, 2013

Leveraging Europe’s Potential for Transatlantic Missile Defense

By Ian Brzezinski and Patrick O'Reilly

One of the most important initiatives concerning US and European security has been the Washington-led effort to build a transatlantic missile defense architecture to counter the growing threat posed by the proliferation of missile technologies. This threat includes Iran’s increasingly capable missiles that many project will be soon able to strike the United States, as well […]

Missile Defense Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Oct 30, 2013

The Wrong War, Again

By Harlan Ullman

Last week, Washington roiled in revelations about the war on terror with reports of drone strikes in Pakistan secretly approved by that government; NSA tapping of the German chancellor and French president’s phone calls along with dozens of other heads of state; and what to do once the 2001 Authorization to Use Military Force ends […]

New Atlanticist

Oct 29, 2013

The Geopolitical Contradictions of the NSA Scandal

By Jeffrey Lightfoot

Europe’s infatuation with Barack Obama started and ended in Germany. The European public fell head over heels in 2008, when then-candidate Obama addressed hundreds of thousands of adoring Germans at the Victory Column. His story was compelling and reminded Europeans of everything they loved about America. Best of all, candidate Obama spoke like a European, […]

Europe & Eurasia United States and Canada

New Atlanticist

Oct 28, 2013

Energy Analyst: Nabucco’s Gap Has to Be Filled

By Vassilios Sitaras

Having read, with great interest might I add, the article by David Koranyi, Ian Brzezinski and Matthew Bryza, published here on New Atlanticist and entitled After Nabucco – Croatia to the Rescue of Central Europe’s Energy Security, I totally agree with the authors that, for reasons of enhancing South-Eastern Europe’s energy security, Nabucco’s gap has to […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

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