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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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.

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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

Jun 25, 2013

Obama in Africa: Take Two

By Sam Fishman

Africa is occupying a larger space on the world stage. Security threats posed by new Islamic extremist groupings, the continent’s rapid GDP growth, and a bullish China blowing past the US in bilateral trade suggest that the continent will rise higher on the presidential agenda. Presidents Bush and Clinton took a special interest in Africa, […]

East Africa

New Atlanticist

Jun 25, 2013

Britain’s Losing the Global Race

By Julian Lindley-French

British Chancellor of the Exchequer (Finance Minister) George Osborne said that Britain must win “the global race,” which is probably a political metaphor for reducing deficit spending and increasing productivity. At the crux of his efforts to claw back a further £11.5bn of savings have been further cuts to the British armed forces. This coming […]

Economy & Business United Kingdom

New Atlanticist

Jun 24, 2013

Rowhani’s Iran

By R. Nicholas Burns

Hassan Rowhani’s surprise victory in Iran’s presidential election last week carries important implications for the country’s future as well as for its tortured relationship with the United States. Rowhani overturned nearly all predictions and the carefully laid plans of Iran’s leadership by defeating a group of much more conservative candidates. In a field of gray […]

Elections Iran

New Atlanticist

Jun 24, 2013

Lessons (Not) Learned from the Caucasus

By Sabine Freizer

The situation in Turkey today could be much less polarized, without such strong anger and distrust of the police, if a key lesson learned in the South Caucasus had been applied in Taksim Square: governments should engage non-violent protestors and allow demonstrations to fizzle out gradually.The indiscriminate and violent police reaction in Turkey did the […]

Turkey

New Atlanticist

Jun 21, 2013

Turkey: Calm Returns – but Calm Before What?

By Ross Wilson

Tomorrow’s headlines could be different, but Istanbul seems to calming after the protests and violence that have wracked the city since late May. Looking back, what took place is significant and in many respects unprecedented.

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Jun 21, 2013

Turkey’s Problems Go Beyond Erdogan

By Sabine Freizer

What started as a protest to preserve a park behind Taksim Square morphed into large-scale leaderless action against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s rule. But against heavy handed police tactics, the movement’s ability to have a lasting effect on policy is likely to be dependent on its ability to move their struggle to the polls, starting […]

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Jun 21, 2013

Nostalgia Is Not Strategy

By Robert Manning

President Obama’s Berlin speech and trip to Europe came at a historical inflection point: The European Union (EU) has been in recession and financial crisis for more than four years. Youth unemployment is a staggering 25 percent. The very idea of Europe is being called into question. Moreover, NATO’s purpose leaves many scratching their heads, […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jun 21, 2013

C-Castration

By Julian Lindley-French

Winston Churchill once famously said, “We can always count on the Americans to do the right thing, but only after they have exhausted all the other possibilities”. Sadly, having just arrived in Washington I am not so sure. Dear old Johnny Yank seems to have invented an entirely new form of non-government called ’C-Castration’, or something such. Now, […]

Economy & Business Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Jun 20, 2013

Toward a Global Missile Defense Architecture

By Ian Brzezinski

The increasing prevalence of ballistic missiles has been highlighted by the latest tensions with North Korea, the ongoing confrontation with Iran, and Syria’s savage civil war. Approximately thirty countries are now armed with ballistic missiles. This number will grow, as will the range, accuracy, and lethality of the ballistic missiles available to friend and foe […]

Missile Defense Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Jun 20, 2013

The Fatal Flaws of R2P

By Rajan Menon

It is now a commonplace belief that a worldwide diffusion of human rights norms occurred following the Cold War, creating a consensus favoring humanitarian intervention. The cachet acquired by the “Responsibility to Protect” (R2P) is proffered as proof of this proposition. This is wishful thinking.

International Organizations Politics & Diplomacy

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