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.

Day of Infamy and High-Water Mark

New Atlanticist
Jul 29, 2025

The Russia pressure menu: Options to convince Putin to negotiate on Ukraine 

As the US president cuts his deadline for Russia to ten days, there are several options for him to increase pressure on Moscow to pursue peace.

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Day of Infamy and High-Water Mark

New Atlanticist
Jul 24, 2025

Dispatch from Manila: A lesson in calling out Chinese maritime aggression

By
Markus Garlauskas, Philip W. Yu

As the Philippines has focused more on Chinese threats to itself, Manila also seems increasingly inclined to see its own security as connected to that of the broader region.

China
Indo-Pacific

Day of Infamy and High-Water Mark

New Atlanticist
Jul 1, 2025

The US must enforce sanctions to prevent Iran from rebuilding its nuclear program

By
Kimberly Donovan

To ensure that Tehran cannot get its hands on the financial resources it would need to rebuild its nuclear program, Iran sanctions enforcement should start with China.

Economic Sanctions
Iran

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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.

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Content

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2011

Day of Infamy and High-Water Mark

By Harlan Ullman

The United States has endured and suffered through days of triumph and tragedy. Among the latter have been the stock market crashes of Sept. 28-29, 1929; Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941; John Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963; and, of course, Sept. 11, 2001, which needs no elaboration. Joining that infamous collection […]

United States and Canada

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2011

Black Swans Galore

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

A mid-summer poll in Arab nations Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates by the Arab-American Institute found the “Arab Spring” isn’t good news for the United States.

New Atlanticist

Aug 10, 2011

US Debt Downgrade

By Hugh De Santis

Standard & Poor’s downgrade of US sovereign debt is bound to weaken America’s financial standing in the world. Because no other country is in a position to supplant the US as the anchor of the international financial system, its reduced economic status may be temporary. The downgrade also signals the end of America’s infatuation with […]

Economy & Business United States and Canada

New Atlanticist

Aug 10, 2011

Swiss Franc: Alternative to Dollar and Euro?

By Max Hirsch

With the dollar and euro reeling, the Swiss franc became a popular destination for investors looking for a more stable currency.

Economy & Business

New Atlanticist

Aug 10, 2011

Under NATO’s Flag: An Interim Assessment of the Mission In Libya (Part Two)

By Vladimir Socor

NATO embarked almost haphazardly in March on the Libya mission. The Alliance became the third entrant to this mission in a rapid sequence, after the United States and the Franco-British tandem.

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Aug 9, 2011

London’s Burning

By Julian Lindley-French

“London’s burning! London’s burning! All across the town, all across the night”. So goes the song by The Clash from the last time London burned in the early 1980s. Last night I watched aghast as streets I know were torched by a mindless, criminal mob. People were robbed in their beds before being burned out […]

United Kingdom

New Atlanticist

Aug 9, 2011

What Next in Libya?

By Derek Reveron

It’s been over four months since NATO launched its air campaign in Libya. Dubbed Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR, NATO pilots have logged at least 17,924 sorties, 6,788 of which were strike missions “to protect civilians and civilian-populated areas under attack or threat of attack.”

Libya NATO

New Atlanticist

Aug 9, 2011

Under NATO’s Flag: An Interim Assessment of the Mission In Libya (Part One)

By Vladimir Socor

NATO is only nominally in charge of the stalemated war in Libya. The Alliance’s leader, the United States, was quick to move to a back seat in this operation after having sparked it. Europe’s residual military powers, France and Britain, are mainly in charge of this war, operating as a tandem but basically in their […]

Libya NATO

New Atlanticist

Aug 8, 2011

Europe’s War Against Ratings Agencies Escalates

By James Joyner

Lost in the hubbub of Standard & Poor’s downgrading the US bond rating is news that the Italian government has the ratings agencies under criminal investigation. The Guardian‘s John Hooper:

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Aug 8, 2011

National Security in an Age of Austerity

By Kurt Volker

“Why are we closing schools in the United States and building schools in Afghanistan?” This was a question recently put to me by a Somali-born taxi driver. Though he may be a newly minted citizen, he cut right to the chase of how Americans feel about foreign policy these days. These feelings are only amplified […]

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