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.

Alexander Haig, Former SACEUR and Atlantic Council Director, Dead at 85

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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Experts React

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

Feb 20, 2010

Alexander Haig, Former SACEUR and Atlantic Council Director, Dead at 85

By The Editors

General Alexander Haig, a long-time friend of the Atlantic Council who served as Supreme Allied Commander from 1974-1979 and as Secretary of State from 1981-1982, has died. He was 85.

New Atlanticist

Feb 19, 2010

Pakistan Optimism Premature?

By James Joyner

While the cooperation of Pakistan’s intelligence service in the capture of Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar has been highly touted as a sign of improved relations with the United States, some are not convinced.

New Atlanticist

Feb 18, 2010

The Euro’s Final Countdown?

By Sylvester Eijffinger and Edin Mujagic

The introduction of the euro in 1999, it was claimed, would narrow the economic differences between the member countries of the monetary union.

European Union
International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Feb 18, 2010

Extending Vietnamization to Afghanistan

By Don Snow

The war in Afghanistan took a familiar turn this week, as the U.S. Marines began an Aghan “surge” to wrest the city of Marja in the opium-infested province of Helmand from the Taliban. The term “surge” kept coming up to describe the purpose and intent of the operation, presumably because of the widely advertised “success” […]

New Atlanticist

Feb 17, 2010

The (New) German Question

By James Joyner

The unfolding Euro crisis has raised a new variant on the old German Question. For much of its history as a state, Germany has been the pivotal state in Europe. After the Cold War and the reunification of East and West, the fate of "Europe" as a unified political and economic space depended entirely on […]

European Union
International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Feb 17, 2010

Iran Options: Sanctions and Strikes

By Jonathan Paris

The inexorable march of the Iranian regime towards nuclear weapons has produced a growing international consensus for serious sanctions. After a year of engagement by President Obama, the Iranians have made it clear that they are not eager to reciprocate by compromising on their nuclear program. The international community now appears to be following a […]

New Atlanticist

Feb 17, 2010

A Test of Will for the U.S. and Pakistan

By Harlan Ullman

That war is a clash of wills is a cliche. Yet, as one of America’s earliest naval heroes John Paul Jones understood, “men (and by extension women) are more important than guns in the rating of a ship.”

New Atlanticist

Feb 16, 2010

U.S. – Pakistan Capture Taliban Commander

By James Joyner

The apparent capture of Afghan Taliban military commander Abdul Ghani Baradar is not only great news in NATO’s war against the militants but potentially a very strong signal of improved cooperation between Pakistan and the United States. Mark Mazzeti and Dexter Filkins broke the news this morning in the NYT. The Taliban’s top military commander […]

New Atlanticist

Feb 16, 2010

Taliban and Al Qaeda: A Shotgun Wedding

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

When U.S. President Barack Obama endorsed the Afghan war as his own the reason he gave was "because that’s where al Qaeda is." In point of fact, al Qaeda skedaddled out of Afghanistan shortly after Oct. 7, 2001, when U.S. troops invaded.

New Atlanticist

Feb 16, 2010

The Russo-Turkish Dance

By Nicholas Siegel

The great Romanov-Osman ball took place at the Russian Consulate in Istanbul. In the hall of mirrors, bewigged, liveried servants bowed as Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, a pretender to the Imperial Russian throne, and Prince Osman Selahaddin Osmanoglu, her Ottoman counterpart, emerged before the assembled guests.

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