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.

The Comprehensive Approach: Groundhog Day?

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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New Atlanticist

Apr 20, 2012

The Comprehensive Approach: Groundhog Day?

By Julian Lindley-French

For the past few days I have been acting as rapporteur for a large conference on enhancing and improving civil-military interaction in crises – the so-called Comprehensive Approach. The fifty heavy pages of notes I have before me testify to the intense nature of the debate and the challenge of writing the conference report. Over […]

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Apr 19, 2012

Lost in Space: NASA’s Sixty-three Million Dollar Russian Taxi Rides

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

The Space Shuttle Discovery flying piggyback on a Boeing 747 for its “Last Hurrah” flight around the Washington Monument and the White House was a grim reminder of misplaced and misspent priorities. The storied 30-year space shuttle program, which began with the launch of Columbia, April 12, 1981, ended last July, when Atlantis landed back […]

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 19, 2012

Ukraine at a Crossroads

By Damon Wilson

Diplomats recently initialed a landmark agreement intended to draw Ukraine closer to the European Union, but the continued imprisonment of two major opposition leaders is pushing Ukraine further from its European aspirations. In the coming months, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych must choose between consolidating power through undemocratic means and advancing his nation’s European aspirations. By […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Apr 19, 2012

Does America Still Want to Lead the World?

By Frederick Kempe

For all their bitter differences, President Obama and Governor Romney share one overwhelming challenge. Whoever is elected will face the growing reality that the greatest risk to global stability over the next 20 years may be the nature of America itself. Nothing – not Iranian or North Korean nuclear weapons, not violent extremists or Mideast […]

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Apr 18, 2012

The Kabul Blame Game

By Derek Reveron

Last weekend’s attacks in Afghanistan demonstrates that the Haqqani Network remains committed to conducting attacks, Afghan security forces are effective, and blame game politics are alive and well. Consider President Karzai’s statement: “The fact terrorists were able to enter Kabul and other provinces was an intelligence failure for us and especially for NATO.” In retort, […]

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Apr 18, 2012

Memo to NATO: Stay Out of Syrian Conflict

By Joshua Foust

Despite this weekend’s unanimous UN Security Council vote, which authorized a team of observers to Syria to monitor the tentative ceasefire there, there remain many questions about what can actually be done to stop the fighting. Conventional wisdom, prior to Saturday, seemed to resign the international community to doing very little about the bloodshed, thanks to […]

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Apr 18, 2012

A Presidential Challenge

By Harlan Ullman

With the emergence of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney as the presumptive Republican nominee, the presidential campaign should enter a serious phase given the gravitas of the issues. Yet the sorry state of American politics means that the chances of a meaningful debate over these difficult and indeed potentially intractable issues confronting the nation aren’t […]

Elections Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2012

How Spain Can Save Europe

By Ben Carliner

Spanish sovereign bond yields are rising again. It seems that the ECB’s long term refinancing operation has not bought as much time as was hoped. But what are the markets worried about? Is it the backsliding by Spain’s government over its fiscal deficit targets? Or is it in fact austerity itself? Market sentiment is never […]

Economy & Business European Union

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2012

Siachen: Ten Questions

By Maleeha Lodhi

It was in April twenty-eight years ago that the seeds of the Siachen conflict were sown. This April nature struck a cruel blow when an avalanche hit the area, burying 139 Pakistani soldiers and civilian workers. The tragedy is a poignant reminder of the need to settle a long-standing, costly dispute. Because facts have been […]

India Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2012

Demilitarization of the Siachen Conflict Zone: Challenges and Prospects

By Gurmeet Kanwal

The death of 124 Pakistani soldiers and 14 civilians in an avalanche in the Siachen conflict zone has once again brought to the fore the dangers of the continued deployment by India and Pakistan to safeguard the Actual Ground Position Line, despite the fact that an informal cease-fire has been holding up quite well since […]

Pakistan

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