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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New Atlanticist

Feb 23, 2010

Clinton: NATO Reform Needed

By James Joyner

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an impassioned plea for NATO institutional reform, an issue she dubbed “critical” for the survival of the Alliance.

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Feb 23, 2010

Clinton: EU No Threat to NATO

By James Joyner

In her Atlantic Council speech on the future of NATO, Hillary Clinton declared unequivocally that the Alliance should work closely with the European Union on security issues, a welcome evolution in America’s foreign policy.

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Feb 23, 2010

Clinton: Cyber Security and Energy Security as NATO Priorities

By James Joyner

During her NATO strategic concept speech, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton argued that “threats to our networks and infrastructure such as cyber attacks and energy disruptions” should be considered an Article 5 action, in which an attack on one is an attack on all.

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Feb 22, 2010

Clinton on Russia and NATO

By James Joyner

Hillary Clinton addressed the Atlantic Council this evening on “The Future of NATO” as a kickoff to a conference on a new strategic concept for the sixty-year-old Alliance. She worked very hard to square the circle on NATO-Russia relations, both advocating increased cooperation and leaving the door open for further contentious expansion.

NATO Russia

New Atlanticist

Feb 22, 2010

Deep Transatlantic Tensions Spotlighted by Obama Effect

By Kurt Volker

President Barack Obama took office in late January 2009, and there can be little doubt that he remains highly popular in Europe a year on. But it is also hard to escape the conclusion that despite the best of intentions on both sides of the Atlantic, there is dissatisfaction with the state of transatlantic relations.

New Atlanticist

Feb 22, 2010

India and Pakistan: Give Dialogue a Chance

By Sherry Rehman

The resumption of dialogue between India and Pakistan is always weighed down by anxiety about outcomes. After the July 26 blasts in Mumbai, New Delhi cut off the composite dialogue process with Islamabad. The foreign secretaries of both countries are now scheduled to meet on Wednesday, February 24th to begin talks again.

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” […]

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