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 24, 2009

Obama Orders Pakistan Drone Attacks

By James Joyner

While President Obama has sent some major signals in his first days in office that his foreign policy will differ from President Bush’s, he sent one yesterday demonstrating continuity on a very key issue: targeting al Qaeda and Taliban militants in Pakistan’s tribal areas.

New Atlanticist

Jan 24, 2009

Euro’s Soft Underbelly Exposed by Financial Crisis

By James Joyner

A report in yesterday’s NYT under the title “Once a Boon, Euro Now Burdens Some Nations” points out that the global financial crisis is creating ripples in the eurozone.

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

5 Questions for Thomas Barnett

By James Joyner

Thomas Barnett has answered five questions I posed to him about his new book, Great Powers: American and the World After Bush. This is the final piece in my week-long series on Barnett for the New Atlanticist.

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

Great Powers – Reflections

By James Joyner

Over the last four days, I’ve given you a thematic look at Great Powers: America and the World After Bush, the next book by Pentagon’s New Map author Thomas Barnett, that goes on sale February 5th. Because of the meatiness of the material, I mostly stuck to summary, trying to synthesize some far-ranging ideas into […]

Global Distribution of Think Tanks, 2008

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

Think About That: 5,465 Think Tanks Worldwide

By Peter Cassata

The January/February issue of Foreign Policy features a thorough review of think tanks throughout the world. According to the data, nearly a third of all think tanks (32.5 percent) are located in the U.S. The Economist put together a good graph illustrating their distribution.

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

India-Iran-Afghanistan Corridor?

By Peter Cassata

In a measure to sidestep Pakistan’s dominance of trade routes to Afghanistan, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has negotiated a deal with Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee that will see India ship goods to land-locked Afghanistan via Iran.

Afghanistan India

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

Obama Revolutionizing German Politics?

By James Joyner

Marcel Reichart argues that Germany’s political parties must learn the lessons from Barack Obama’s campaign, so that they, too, can use the Internet to get ordinary people involved. It looks like they’re well on their way to doing just that.

Germany

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

Russia Offers Afghanistan Cooperation

By James Joyner

Like many other countries, Russia is seizing on a new administration in Washington in an effort to redefine its relationship with the United States. Denis Dyomkin for Reuters: Russia welcomes U.S. President Barack Obama’s decision to review policy in Afghanistan and is ready to cooperate, including on supply routes for NATO forces, Russian President Dmitry […]

Afghanistan Russia

New Atlanticist

Jan 23, 2009

Ceasefire with al Qaeda?

By James Joyner

Marc Lynch passes on word that “Mohammed Essam Derbala, one of the leaders of the Egyptian al-Gama’a al-Islamiya, [Thursday] called on Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda to declare a unilateral four month ceasefire [hudna] with the United States to test Barack Obama’s pledges to establish a new relationship with the Islamic world and to close […]

New Atlanticist

Jan 22, 2009

Europe Lauds Secret Prison Shutdown

By James Joyner

President Obama’s order to “shut secret CIA-run prisons abroad brought renewed calls for their locations to be disclosed as well a fresh denial from Poland, one of two eastern European countries most closely linked to the practice,” Shawn Pogatchnik and Frank Jordans report for AP

Poland

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