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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New Atlanticist

Jul 12, 2011

Talking with Benazir

By Julian Lindley-French

The American decision to ‘punish’ Pakistan by withdrawing some $800m of a $3 billion military aid package demonstrates Washington’s nuanced approach to dealing with Islamabad that is to be commended. Clearly, the Pakistani Government knew exactly the whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden at the time of his death in May at the hands of American […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Jul 12, 2011

US-Iran: Tensions Mount Over Iraq, Nuke Sanctions

By Barbara Slavin

Reviving U.S.-Iran friction over Iraq may have more to do with deteriorating relations over Iran’s nuclear programme than with uncertainty over U.S. troop levels in Iraq beyond the end of this year. In recent weeks, a chorus of U.S. officials has accused Iran of providing lethal weapons to Iraqi Shiite militias that have targeted U.S. […]

Iran

New Atlanticist

Jul 11, 2011

South Sudan: Free at Last! Now What?

By Peter Pham

The birth this past weekend of the Republic of South Sudan as the world’s newest independent state is, in many respects, a triumph for the Atlantic community’s diplomatic efforts in general and United States leadership in particular. The acceptance of the possibility of secession was the central feature of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) […]

East Africa

New Atlanticist

Jul 11, 2011

Should the United States Be More Like China?

By James Joyner

I’m continually shocked when demonstrably bright and accomplished people come back from posh meetings in authoritarian states gushing about what they saw and exhorting their fellow citizens that we need to emulate those societies. The latest victim of this affliction, of which Tom Friedman is the exemplar, is former Microsoft CEO Robert Herbold. In a Wall Street […]

China

New Atlanticist

Jul 11, 2011

The Necessity of U.S. Naval Power

By Gordon England James L. Jones and Vern Clark

All our citizens, and especially our servicemen and women, expect and deserve a thorough review of critical security decisions. After all, decisions today will affect the nation’s strategic position for future generations. The future security environment underscores two broad security trends. First, international political realities and the internationally agreed-to sovereign rights of nations will increasingly […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 8, 2011

Future of the Marine Corps: Looking Beyond Afghanistan

By Magnus Nordenman

I’m zooming across Virginia at 9,000 feet inside a Marine Corps V-22 Osprey, the sometimes maligned aircraft that just recently entered service with the Marine Corps. I am hitching a ride down to Cherry Point, North Carolina to observe part of Exercise Mailed Fist, the largest Marine Corps exercise on the east coast in decades. […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 8, 2011

Topsy-Turvy Alliance

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

The ingredients for a pluperfect national storm coupled with a pluperfect action completed at or before the time of another past action are the best way to try to understand the crazy mixed-up — but still critically important — alliance between Pakistan and the United States. Fickle friends and strong enemies at the same time […]

Pakistan

Lord Robertson Atlantic Council Makins Lecture, March 2, 2010

New Atlanticist

Jul 7, 2011

Former NATO Boss to Europeans: Have We No Pride?

By James Joyner

Former NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson, a member of the Atlantic Council International Advisory Board, says that not only were Bob Gates’ parting shots at NATO correct but “he may well have pulled some punches.” Speaking at London’s Chatham House, he declared that “Bob Gates’ words should put a shiver down the collective European spine.” At […]

Libya NATO

New Atlanticist

Jul 7, 2011

Can Europe’s Small Leaders Make Big Strategy?

By Julian Lindley-French

George Washington wrote, “A slender acquaintance with the world must convince every man that actions, not words, are the true criterion of the attachment of friends”. As Leon Panetta takes over at the Pentagon the US military faces cuts unknown for a generation. A defence budget of $700 billion is unsustainable given the intensive care […]

Europe & Eurasia

New Atlanticist

Jul 7, 2011

Reconnecting with Europe

By Ana Palacio and Margaritis Schinas

On Wednesday June 29, the Barroso Commission presented the European Union 2013-2020 budget. The negotiations between the member states and the European Parliament have thus begun, and the process will be long and difficult. Long, because the final agreement will have to be decided unanimously in the midst of the worst financial and economic crisis […]

Economy & Business European Union

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