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

Mar 14, 2013

A Roadmap for Negotiating with Iran

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

It is still early in the second term of the Obama administration, and as with the beginning of all presidential terms, hope springs eternal in political circles that longstanding obstacles to policy progress will be swept away. In that spirit, a host of commentators are calling for the United States and Iran to make a […]

Elections Iran

New Atlanticist

Mar 14, 2013

Transatlantic Confessions

By Stanley R. Sloan

Are transatlantic relations in another crisis, perhaps a slow rolling one, or are we at the opening of a new and more promising era for the United States, Canada, and their European partners? Decisions on both sides of the Atlantic in the next few years will determine the fate of America’s most important alliance.

Economy & Business NATO

New Atlanticist

Mar 13, 2013

Making History at the Vatican

By Frederick Kempe

I have covered far happier times for the Vatican. I reported on John Paul II’s pilgrimage through his native Poland some three decades ago, and I have been thinking about this while watching the Catholic Church’s 115 cardinal electors pray for divine inspiration on this historic day in Rome’s Sistine Chapel.

New Atlanticist

Mar 13, 2013

Hidden in Plain Sight

By Harlan Ullman

As U.S. President Barack Obama and his administration begin a second term, they face powerfully transformed political landscapes at home and abroad.

United States and Canada

New Atlanticist

Mar 12, 2013

Muddling Through from One NATO Ministerial to Another

By Isabelle Francois

NATO Defense Ministers recently met for their periodic discussions on allied capabilities and operations, and engaged with their counterparts from partner countries to discuss the way ahead in Afghanistan. Automatic US budget cuts which went into effect on March 1st were looming large. The Pentagon spokesman, George Little, announced on the eve of the ministerial […]

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Mar 12, 2013

Was Afghanistan Worth It? Part II

By Derek Reveron

Last week, James Joyner posed the question, “was Afghanistan worth it?” He offered a compelling strategy-based assessment concluding “while the goal may be just, the mission still isn’t defined and the objectives are far from clear.” If this was not enough, Karzai’s recent charge that the Taliban are in service of the United States challenges […]

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Mar 11, 2013

Syria: Between Sarajevo and Baghdad

By Julian Lindley-French

Thucydides, the great-great grandfather of unforgiving International Relations, once said, “The strong do what they have to do and the weak accept what they have to accept”. British Foreign Secretary Hague’s announcement last week in Parliament that Britain will send armored vehicles and bullet-proof vests to support the Syrian National Coalition came just at the moment when […]

International Organizations Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Mar 8, 2013

Our Arctic Strategy Deficit

By William Edwards

The United States is juggling multiple crises at home and around the world. Operating in crisis mode has meant a lack of attention to over-the-horizon issues, not least of which are in the Arctic, where there is a looming fight for territorial expansion driven by large amounts of untapped oil and natural gas resources in […]

Europe & Eurasia Northern Europe

New Atlanticist

Mar 7, 2013

North Korean Albatross Around China’s Neck

By Robert A. Manning

North Korea’s recent nuclear test was a stark reminder to China that the days of a “lips and teeth” relationship with Pyongyang, of Mao Zedong and Kim Il-sung half a century ago, are long gone. Nuclear test after nuclear test, missile test after missile test, Pyongyang has time after time ignored Beijing’s pleas not to […]

Korea National Security

New Atlanticist

Mar 7, 2013

For 375 Years, Close Partners

By Mark Brzezinski and Jonas Hafstrom

Innovative – entrepreneurial – audacious – these words apply to this region just as much today as they did 375 years ago.

Energy & Environment Northern Europe

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