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
Mar 6, 2025

How European leaders are responding to Trump’s approach to Ukraine and Europe

From London and Berlin to Paris and Brussels, European leaders have taken several notable steps this week on security. This follows the blow-up between the Ukrainian and US presidents on February 28.

New Atlanticist
Feb 26, 2025

Why the US should not lift sanctions against Russia

By
Charles Lichfield

Sanctions are having an unmistakable effect, albeit below the inflated expectations of many in the West in early 2022. Lifting them now would be a mistake.

Conflict
Economic Sanctions

New Atlanticist
Mar 5, 2025

The Egyptian plan for postwar Gaza is a good starting point—but it needs changes

By
Thomas S. Warrick

While many obstacles remain, the Egyptian proposal could form the starting point for negotiations over a workable plan for postwar Gaza.

Conflict
Crisis Management

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New Atlanticist

Dec 8, 2010

Presidential Decision Punts

By Harlan Ullman

To use a football metaphor, the United States needs an able quarterback in the Oval Office. As three new books out this fall vividly reveal, we have had a punter in that position for some considerable time where fumbling has been a long suit.

New Atlanticist

Dec 7, 2010

Eurozone: Time For Drastic Action?

By James Joyner

IMF managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn today said that, while he did not believe the euro was at risk, the EU must take a more “comprehensive, integrated” plan rather than the current "piecemeal approach." These remarks, FT reports, come the day after a meeting with EU finance ministers yielded only frustration, with officials "divided over the two most high-profile proposals, increasing the […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 7, 2010

WikiLeaks: One Foreign Service Officer’s View

By Susan Ball

As a career Foreign Service Officer, I guess I should be gratified that various analysts and news outlets have declared, as a result of leaked State Department dispatches, that the U.S. diplomatic corps is dedicated, astute and insightful. However, I think I can speak for the majority of my colleagues when I say that […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 6, 2010

Ending America’s ‘Sea Blindness’

By Butch Bracknell and James Kraska

The United States suffers from a kind of "sea blindness" — an inability to appreciate the central role the oceans and naval power have played in securing our strategic security and economic prosperity. One symptom of this bipartisan malady has been that the country is failing to take an active role in shaping the world […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 6, 2010

American Exceptionalism Lives on as Dollar Preserves its Hold on World Money

By Darrell Delamaide

As the euro drama unfolds across the Atlantic, no one in Washington is holding their breath over the next choice piece of advice German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble will impart about how best to manage a currency. On the other hand, there’s little indication of outright Schadenfreude, because the dismal goings-on in Europe don’t bode […]

Economy & Business

New Atlanticist

Dec 3, 2010

NATO in Lisbon: A Moderate Success

By David Smith

Although the pre-summit hype—mostly generated by NATO itself—had observers thirsting for more, the 19-20 November NATO Lisbon Summit was a moderate success. The alliance took some measured steps toward dealing with new challenges, deftly sidestepped some political landmines and laid a reasonable foundation for the considerable work that remains. Perhaps most important, in Lisbon, NATO reinvigorated itself.

New Atlanticist

Dec 2, 2010

WikiLeaks Show American Diplomats in Good Light

By James Joyner

The WikiLeaks fiasco has doubtless lowered confidence in the American government’s ability to keep secrets and manage classified information. The latest dump provided some embarrassing moments for the State Department in particular. But they also showed that those handling America’s day-to-day foreign policy are quite capable.

New Atlanticist

Dec 2, 2010

U.S.-China Relations: Gone Fishin’

By Banning Garrett

When I was about eight years old, my father took me fishing in a stream a few miles from our ranch in California. After a long day, we came up dry. Dad saw I was disappointed, so he pulled into a fish farm on the way home. I eagerly dropped my line into a pond […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 2, 2010

International Subversives

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

Undressing electronically with eyes wide shut is what the world’s only superpower has done in a global striptease worthy of the Marx brothers but hardly a word has been written or spoken about the motives of the WikiLeaks’ chief leaker. Australia’s 39-year-old Julian Assange was 19 years old when the Cold War ended. His parents […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 1, 2010

Strengthening the OSCE in Eurasia

By Jeffrey Lightfoot

When leaders of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) gather for a summit in Astana, Kazakhstan this week, they will visit a region in turmoil. Central Asia is beset by ethnic conflict, poor governance and instability in Afghanistan. The spread of transnational threats from this strategic region mean that its security and […]

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