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.

Possible Deliverables at OSCE Summit in Kazakhstan: Part 2

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

Jul 30, 2010

Possible Deliverables at OSCE Summit in Kazakhstan: Part 2

By Vladimir Socor

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is the primary international organization in charge of resolving the Transnistria conflict since 1993. This task forms the basis, and sole raison d’etre, of the OSCE Moldova Mission’s mandate. Russian veto power, however, has prevented the OSCE from making any headway there. Any document on Moldova […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 29, 2010

Germany Can’t Afford Military Conscription

By James Joyner

Germany’s new coalition government has cut the period military conscripts must serve from nine months to six. And there’s a fair chance they’ll end mandatory service altogether. It’s about time. There’s little doubt that the draft has long ended its military usefulness. The United States has relied on an all-volunteer force since 1973 and almost […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 29, 2010

EU Hydra: Which Head to Talk To?

By Matthew Czekaj

Since the ratification of the EU Lisbon Treaty, a new joke has been circulating in Brussels: in response to Henry Kissinger’s inquiry as to who to call to speak to ‘Europe,’ that number finally exists.

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jul 29, 2010

Possible Deliverables at OSCE Summit in Kazakhstan: Part 1

By Vladimir Socor

Kazakhstan’s chairmanship of the OSCE, to be crowned by the summit of 56 heads of state in Astana, can hardly ignore Russia’s challenges to the post-Cold War international order (EDM, July 27). Fortuitously, Kazakhstan’s chairmanship and the summit coincide with round anniversaries of the OSCE’s fundamental documents: the 1975 Helsinki Final Act and the 1990 […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 28, 2010

European Defense Cuts: Look on the Bright Side

By James Joyner

Europe’s Big Three are slashing already paltry defense budgets in the wake of the global recession. Germany’s cuts could be as deep as forty percent. Some are arguing that this will be a good thing for transatlantic security, forcing the allies to rationalize spending and interlink their forces more effectively. Reuters‘ Dave Graham reports in […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 28, 2010

Afghanistan’s Four Musketeers

By Harlan Ullman

The episode that led to the resignation of U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal as commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan has created an opportunity for constructing the foundation for a more stable region. Much will rest on the four U.S. flag and general officers with overarching responsibilities for the region and whether their […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 28, 2010

Sweden Developing Greater Regional Defense Role

By Magnus Nordenman

In August the sunny calm and quiet that is a Swedish summer will be shattered by the impact of Joint Direct Attack Munitions dropped by F-16CM Fighting Falcons from US Air Force Europe.

New Atlanticist

Jul 27, 2010

Secrecy and Strategy in Afghanistan

By Bernard Finel

I don’t condone leaking secrets. But nor do I condone a policy that can only work in secret. Yes, there are some narrow tactical initiatives that make sense as covert action. But, even then, secrecy is a wasting asset, and any strategy that requires secrecy in the long-term is likely doomed to failure. Our strategy […]

New Atlanticist

Jul 27, 2010

Moscow Uses Anti-Iran Sanctions as Bargaining Leverage on Washington

By Vladimir Socor

To hinder Iran’s uranium-enrichment program, the US has introduced sanctions that bar deliveries of gasoline and other refined oil products to Iran. The European Union is following the US lead in this case. Russia’s initial response is calculated to suggest that it does not consider itself bound

New Atlanticist

Jul 27, 2010

Elvis bin Laden

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

The "Veterans Today" Network, a one-man show on the Internet created and run by Gordon Duff, a 100 percent disabled Marine Vietnam veteran, states flatly that 9/11 was a CIA/Mossad conspiracy and that Osama bin Laden wasn’t involved and died in 2001. This can easily be dismissed as yet another example of deliberately disseminated disinformation […]

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