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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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

Dec 20, 2010

Pakistan’s Extremist Havens

By James Joyner

Shuja Nawaz, director of the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center, gave a long interview to PBS NewsHour on the subject "Pakistan’s Extremist Havens: What Options Does U.S. Have?"

New Atlanticist

Dec 17, 2010

Merkel Wins Again

By James Joyner

Even as Angela Merkel continues to suffer defeats within her own governing coalition in Germany, she has once again imposed her will on the EU, forcing austerity rather than additional bailouts to deal with the ongoing fiscal crisis in the eurozone.

New Atlanticist

Dec 16, 2010

“Resetting” the Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process?

By Don Snow

It comes as no revelation to report that the efforts of the Obama administration to move the on-again, but mostly off-again peace process between Israel and the Palestinians is currently going nowhere.

New Atlanticist

Dec 15, 2010

WikiLeaks and the Specter of Cyber War

By Harlan Ullman

Karl Marx proclaimed that a “specter was haunting Europe.” But it took decades before the specter of socialism became a reality in the formation of the Soviet Union. Today, a “cyberspecter” haunts us. We better be alert to it because we don’t have decades to wait. Cyberwar, computer hacking and the information revolution are well-worn […]

Cybersecurity Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Dec 14, 2010

AfPak After Holbrooke: Replacing an Irreplaceable Man

By Shuja Nawaz

The untimely passage of Ambassador Richard Holbrooke leaves big shoes to fill in the AfPak region. It may take two men to replace him. In a column that Holbrooke wrote for the Washington Post in March 2008, entitled "Hope in Pakistan: the problems are real, but so is progress" he captured the essence of the […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 14, 2010

Richard Holbrooke, 1941-2010

By The Editors

Richard Holbrooke, a distinguished American statesman who served two terms on the Atlantic Council’s Board of Directors in between high government posts, has died. He was 69. Among those commenting on Holbrooke’s lifetime of service: President Barack Obama: Michelle and I are deeply saddened by the passing of Richard Holbrooke, a true giant of American […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 14, 2010

Medvedev Frowns

By David Smith

“It’s a victory! We are hosting the 2018 World Cup,” a beaming Russian President Dmitry Medvedev tweeted his countrymen, moments after the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) made its December 2 announcement in Zurich. It was a big turnaround from the frown he wore just 24 hours earlier as he stormed off from the Astana Summit […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 13, 2010

Vietnam Syndrome?

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. and NATO supremo in Afghanistan, is as well versed in the history of major post-World War II insurgencies as anyone alive today. From Lawrence of Arabia to Mao’s and Tito’s guerrilla triumphs to France’s 16 years of defeats in Indochina and Algeria, Petraeus knows it all — and […]

New Atlanticist

Dec 13, 2010

Financial Impact of Lisbon Summit: Interview with Currency Strategist Marc Chandler

By Sarwar Kashmeri

The long-awaited NATO Strategic Concept, revealed last month at the Lisbon Summit, had very little impact on global financial markets. In the latest installment of the New Atlanticist Podcast Series Atlantic Council senior fellow Sarwar Kashmeri interviews Marc Chandler of Brown Brothers Harriman to discuss this issue, China’s financial leverage on the US, and the […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Dec 10, 2010

Taiwan’s Democracy at Home and Abroad: Implications of 2010 Municipal Elections for Cross-Strait Relations

By Patrick deGategno and Sam Dreiman

Taiwan’s recent municipal elections show a growing de facto consensus among Taiwan’s major parties that officially declaring independence is not an option and that closer economic and cultural ties with the Mainland are a must. According to a panel of experts speaking December 1 at the Atlantic Council, future Taiwan governments, whether led by Taiwan’s current ruling […]

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