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.

Obama v. Romney: More Style than Substance

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

Sep 28, 2012

Obama v. Romney: More Style than Substance

By Jeffrey Lightfoot

The 2012 US presidential campaign is decidedly not about foreign policy. For Governor Mitt Romney, the campaign is about convincing the American electorate that President Barack Obama has been a poor steward of the economy and should be replaced. For Obama the task is to convince voters that Romney is too out-of-touch with the American […]

Elections National Security

New Atlanticist

Sep 27, 2012

Drone War AWOL From Presidential Campaign

By James Joyner

A new study released this week by researchers at Stanford and NYU has found that American drone strikes in Pakistan are killing far more civilians than advertised, taking out few high value targets, and have become the primary recruiting tool for the terrorist groups the policy is aimed at combating. The report, “Living Under Drones: […]

Drones National Security

New Atlanticist

Sep 27, 2012

Strategic Pivot to Nowhere

By Harlan Ullman

When Britain and France launched pre-emptive military strikes last year that would eventually depose Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and his regime, one of President Barack Obama’s most senior advisers described U.S. involvement as “leading from behind,” a most unfortunate descriptor that haunted the administration much as George W. Bush’s “mission accomplished” label early in the […]

Indo-Pacific National Security

New Atlanticist

Sep 27, 2012

A Yankee Spring in the Middle East

By Sarwar Kashmeri

The United States has earned the thanks of a freer Arab people, but has yet to earn their respect, and for good reason. For over 30 years American taxpayers shelled out over $60 billion in aid to the authoritarian Hosni Mubarak regime in Egypt that jailed its opponents and stifled dissent to keep the country […]

Middle East North Africa

New Atlanticist

Sep 26, 2012

Europe’s Naked Emperors

By Julian Lindley-French

With a loose heritage that dates back to Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire Vienna is the quintessential post-imperial European city. Now the capital of a small but rich and modern European state it was once the epicenter of a vast multicultural, multi-ethnic empire that collapsed in 1918 under the weight of its own political […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Sep 26, 2012

Powell and Solana: Fast Resolution in Syria Unlikely

By James Joyner

While they agreed that the international community must do all it can to stop the bloodshed in Syria, neither former US Secretary of State General Colin Powell nor former EU High Commissioner Javier Solana hold out much hope for a rapid solution.

Security & Defense Weapons Trafficking

New Atlanticist

Sep 25, 2012

Bipartisan Insanity on the Iran Question

By James Joyner

In the midst of a boilerplate speech to the UN General Assembly on the virtues of democracy and freedom, President Obama tossed in some rhetoric on Iran that’s either empty or dangerous. Neither option is a good one.

Iran Nuclear Nonproliferation

New Atlanticist

Sep 24, 2012

Founding Father of a Federal Europe

By Ben Carliner

Formally, the European Central Bank has but a single mandate – price stability. But as the debt crisis facing the Eurozone has evolved into an existential challenge, the ECB has been pushed into taking on responsibilities far beyond its original raison d’etre.

Economy & Business Europe & Eurasia

New Atlanticist

Sep 21, 2012

Time to Get NATO More Active on the Syrian Situation

By Robert Bracknell

The Syrian regime is struggling to contain yet another manifestation of the Arab Spring with brutality and inhumanity unparalleled since the freedom phenomenon began in Tunisia last April. The international media has documented the slaughter of thousands of rebels and protected civilians, waging war indiscriminately and through inhumane and unlawful means against internal populations whose […]

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Sep 21, 2012

Russian Military Reform: Not Quite There Yet

By Jakub Kulhanek

With the last year defense budget of $72 billion, Russia has overtaken Britain and France to become the world’s third-largest defense spender. The Russian armed forces are in the midst of wide ranging transformation whilst acquiring some state-of-the-art weapons, including French-built Mistral amphibious assault ships.

Nuclear Nonproliferation Russia

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