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.

Lord Robertson: NATO on Edge of a Precipice

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.

Markup

Our experts decipher and annotate major speeches and policy documents to break down big ideas and lay them out in plain language.

New Atlanticist

Mar 3, 2010

Lord Robertson: NATO on Edge of a Precipice

By James Joyner

Lord George Robertson, NATO Secretary General from 1999 to 2004, says that the Alliance and its constituent members are "on the edge of a precipice looking down on a world of growing disorder and discontent and only blunt talk and straight language will save us from falling over."

New Atlanticist

Mar 2, 2010

Erdogan vs the Generals: Turkey’s Political Future in the Balance

By James Joyner

The ongoing clash between the Erdogan government and the military brass has spotlighted longstanding tensions in Turkey’s political and social culture and even has some wondering whether a military coup remains a possibility in a country with one foot in the West and one in the East. Thankfully, early signs point to a victory for […]

New Atlanticist

Mar 2, 2010

Estonia in NATO

By Kurt Volker

A small country has its advantages, if it knows how to use them. With less bureaucracy and fewer actors, most of whom have known each other for years, a small country can sometimes be more nimble and strategic than a large one. Of course there can be disadvantages and vulnerabilities as well – but that’s […]

New Atlanticist

Mar 1, 2010

French Burqa Ban Widely Supported in Europe

By James Joyner

As France goes ahead with its ban on the wearing of the burqa, a new FT-Harris poll shows majority support for doing the same in the UK, Italy, Spain, and Germany — and strong opposition in the United States.

United Kingdom

New Atlanticist

Mar 1, 2010

The Ukrainian ‘W’

By Alexander Motyl

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych bears a striking resemblance to former President George W. Bush. Although Bush was born rich and Yanukovych poor, both were rowdy as youths, with the former drinking and carousing and the latter serving two jail terms for hooliganism.

Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Feb 26, 2010

Dutch Afghanistan Exit a Game Changer

By Julian Lindley-French and Kurt Volker

The Dutch Government has fallen over Afghanistan. As a result the August 2010 withdrawal of Dutch forces from Uruzghan, the Afghan province into which the Netherlands has invested money and lives for eight years, will be confirmed.

New Atlanticist

Feb 26, 2010

Russian Economic Model Dead? From BRIC to BIC?

By James Joyner

Anders Åslund asserts that “The Putin model of crony state capitalism is dead” and consequently “the juggernaut of emerging economies in Brazil, Russia, India and China is being reduced from BRIC to BIC.”

New Atlanticist

Feb 26, 2010

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Policy

By James Joyner

Alexandros Petersen, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Energy Center, was interviewed by Azerbaijan’s News.Az’s Aliyah Fridman. Three Azerbaijani soldiers were killed and one was wounded when Armenians broke the cease-fire on 18 February. May the incident lead to a new war between Azerbaijan and Armenia? Unfortunately, cease-fire violations are common in the […]

New Atlanticist

Feb 25, 2010

NATO’s Future: Realism Required

By James Joyner

In his speech on revising the NATO Strategic Concept, Defense Secretary Bob Gates termed European reluctance to adequately staff its militaries and shoulder a proportionate share of the operational burden "an impediment to achieving real security and lasting peace."

Cybersecurity
Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Feb 25, 2010

Marja and the Battle for Helmand Province

By Don Snow

The battle for the Helmand provincial town/city (population around 80,000) is now well underway. It has been advertised as the center of the current “surge” in Afghanistan, an entirely unveiled reference to and comparison with the 2007 exercise in Iraq that lowered the level of violence there sufficiently.

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