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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.

Afghanistan Debate Intensifies

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.

Read More

Afghanistan Debate Intensifies

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

Afghanistan Debate Intensifies

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

Aug 12, 2009

Afghanistan Debate Intensifies

By James Joyner

The U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan is the latest senior official calling for additional resources for the effort there.  Meanwhile, the debate over whether NATO should continue its mission at all has taken off.

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Aug 12, 2009

How Secure are Pakistan’s Nukes?

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

Is Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal theft-proof? Former President Pervez Musharraf and his successor Asif Ali Zardari and their army and intelligence chiefs repeatedly have assured both the Bush and Obama administrations that their 80-odd nuclear weapons are as secure as the U.S. arsenal of some 7,000 city busters. The Pakistanis have separated warheads from delivery systems […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Aug 12, 2009

National Security in the 21st century

By Harlan Ullman

Last Sunday Barack Obama’s national security adviser, retired Marine Gen. James L. Jones, made the television morning talk show rounds. Perhaps the most provocative question fired at him was why he was playing a far less visible – and critics would add even an invisible – role than his more famous predecessors such as Henry […]

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2009

The Myth of Western Decline and G7-OECD Obsolescence

By Ira Louis Straus

Despite widespread belief in a decline of the West and obsolescence of G7-G8, the actual statistics show that G7-8 remains overwhelmingly important, both as a vehicle for mutual cooperation and a guide for the world economy. A G14 or G20 could not provide an adequate substitute for it.

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2009

An Alternative Counter-Terrorism Strategy: Domestic Elements

By Bernard Finel

Yesterday, I posted some thoughts on counter-terrorism strategy that charted a different vision from the one laid out by John Brennan last week.  Today, I will be discussing some domestic steps – homeland security measures – that would also provide better security than current measures.

National Security Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2009

Somali Pirates: Al Qaeda’s Navy?

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

Hollywood’s glamorization of the Barbary Pirates over the years blurred the horror of a seaborne plague. Between 1530 and 1789, some 1.5 million European Christians and Jews, and American sailors and travelers, were kidnapped and enslaved in Islamic North Africa.

Somalia

New Atlanticist

Aug 11, 2009

Nabucco No Guarantee of EU Energy Security

By Alexandros Petersen

Last month’s euphoria over the European Union’s agreement with Turkey on the Nabucco gas pipeline was perhaps a little premature—Brussels still has a long way to go to reduce its energy dependence from Russia.

Energy & Environment European Union

New Atlanticist

Aug 10, 2009

An Alternative Counter-Terrorism Strategy: International Elements

By Bernard Finel

My colleague Evelyn Farkas challenged me to provide a follow-on to my somewhat critical review of John Brennan’s speech outlining the Obama Administration’s counter-terrorism policy. 

New Atlanticist

Aug 10, 2009

Pakistan and the Taliban: Leaders Caught Betwixt and Between

By Shuja Nawaz

Following the reported death of Baitullah Mehsud from an American drone attack, Pakistan faces a number of challenges. Will it be able to take an offensive against the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as it faces disarray? Will it be able to resist the US pressure to “do more” against the Afghan Taliban now that the United […]

New Atlanticist

Aug 10, 2009

Weak Russia, Dangerous Russia

By Donald Bandler and Jakub Kulhanek

The reaction from the American defense establishment to news that Russian submarines have been operating off the U.S. coast has been fairly nonchalant, bordering on smug. The submarine operation is widely seen as a rather feeble show of strength by the Russian military after a series of embarrassments over botched missile tests and undistinguished conduct […]

Russia
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