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

Jan 8, 2010

Al Qaeda a Moving Target

By Don Snow

Connections between the Christmas Underwear Bomber and the Ft. Hood massacre to a radical cleric in Yemen have once again returned that desert country to the center of the ongoing contest against terror and its most notorious emblem, Al Qaeda. It is, of course, not the first time Americans (including much of the media) have […]

New Atlanticist

Jan 8, 2010

South Asia in 2010: Black Swans

By Cyril Almeida

Black swans. Thanks to the irascible Nassim Nicholas Taleb, the world is now familiar with the term. But perhaps few places should beware of the black swan like Pakistan should, or at least those in the business of making predictions about Pakistan.

New Atlanticist

Jan 8, 2010

South Asia in 2010: Difficult Times Could Get Worse

By Bruce Riedel

The war in Afghanistan will intensify in 2010 as NATO tries to regain the initiative from the insurgency. Casualties will rise. By year’s end we will only begin to see whether or not Obama’s strategy shows signs of reversing the momentum away from the Taliban.

New Atlanticist

Jan 8, 2010

South Asia in 2010: High Stakes

By Hilary Synnott

The 2009 strategy towards Afghanistan will fall to be reassessed in 2010. If exasperation and domestic political expediency override hard-headed analysis and lead to a reliance on kinetic options as a presumed final alternative, the consequences in the region – and for the U.S. – will be truly bleak.

New Atlanticist

Jan 7, 2010

Eurozone’s Periphery Fighting With One Hand Tied Behind Their Back

By James Joyner

The FT’s chief economics commentator, Martin Wolf, argues that, without the ability to manipulate national currencies, the EU’s poorer members are going to have a very difficult time recovering from the global recession.

New Atlanticist

Jan 7, 2010

The Cost of Korean Reunification

By Peter Beck

North Korea’s nuclear program has preoccupied foreign policy makers for years, but it’s not the only problem on the Korean Peninsula. Kim Jong Il’s regime looks increasingly unstable and could collapse.

New Atlanticist

Jan 7, 2010

South Asia in 2010: A Bleak Future

By Ahmed Rashid

2010 will be a year of critical challenges for both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Both nations need to move towards political stability, succeed against extremism and attain economic growth.

New Atlanticist

Jan 7, 2010

South Asia in 2010: Rise of the Asian Giants

By Masood Aziz

With a new year upon us, the imminent challenges faced by Afghanistan and Pakistan are becoming increasingly important. Yet a new and immensely powerful set of global trends are recreating unprecedented opportunities in this region not seen since the apex of the mighty Silk Road.

New Atlanticist

Jan 7, 2010

South Asia in 2010: A Region in Flux

By M.J. Akbar

2010 will be a year of confusion, further confounded by ongoing violence, for west-south-central Asia. The region will be in flux, shifting from nowhere to nowhere, rather than in a transition for which the journey is charted and the destination known.

New Atlanticist

Jan 6, 2010

South Asia in 2010: Shoals Ahead

By Shuja Nawaz

2009 was a year of major decisions in South Asia, especially in the Afghanistan-Pakistan theater, as local populations and governments took decisive actions.

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