Issue briefs and reports

Issue briefs and reports

Our programs and centers deliver in-depth, highly relevant issue briefs and reports that break new ground, shift opinions, and set agendas on public policy, with a focus on advancing debates by integrating foundational research and analysis with concrete policy solutions.

Innovation, leadership, and national security

Report Mar 30, 2026

How the West lost the post-Cold War era

By Brian Whitmore

The latest Atlantic Council Eurasia Center report examines the lessons from the post-Cold War period and what the United States and its allies can do to counter Russian revanchism today.
Europe & Eurasia Politics & Diplomacy
Innovation, leadership, and national security

Atlantic Council Strategy Paper Series Feb 10, 2026

Global Foresight 2036

In this year’s Global Foresight edition, our experts share findings from our survey of geostrategists on how human affairs could unfold over the next decade. Our scholars spot “snow leopards” that could have major unexpected impacts over the next decade. And our tech experts put AI’s forecasting ability to the test.
Africa Central Asia
Innovation, leadership, and national security

Issue Brief Mar 19, 2026

Federal agencies under pressure need smarter systems, not tougher people

By Caitlin Thompson

Resilience is an important trait for national security practitioners, but it is not a solution for problems with agency and department design. Better systems and strategies can ensure that individuals are fully prepared and ready to respond to crises, rather than consistently under strain.
National Security Resilience

Content

Report

Apr 11, 2016

Innovation, leadership, and national security

By Franklin D. Kramer and James A. Wrightson, Jr.

This report proposes that both the US government and the American private sector take significant steps to encourage innovation beyond what the United States, already an innovative society, has successfully accomplished.

Defense Technologies Entrepreneurship

Issue Brief

Apr 6, 2016

A maritime framework for the Baltic Sea region

By Franklin D. Kramer and Magnus Nordenman

An effective maritime framework would be a critical element in an integrated NATO deterrent and reassurance strategy for the Baltic Sea region, in light of hostile Russian actions and the emerging Anti-Access/Area-Denial (A2/AD) challenge in northern Europe. Such a framework would provide the Alliance the capability for sea and air control over the Baltic Sea region and, as necessary, support the requirements of reinforcement and combined capabilities including intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance, electronic warfare, and precision engagement.

Maritime Security NATO

Report

Apr 6, 2016

Building a Transatlantic Digital Marketplace: Twenty Steps Toward 2020

By Atlantic Council’s Task Force on Advancing a Transatlantic Digital Agenda

The United States and the European Union (EU) have a historic opportunity—perhaps their last—to be leaders in building the digital market of the future. To do so, they must seize the opportunity to create a transatlantic digital single market stretching from Silicon Valley to Tallinn, Estonia. Together, they can give a new burst of energy […]

Digital Policy European Union
Distract Deceive Destroy

Report

Apr 5, 2016

Distract Deceive Destroy

By Maksymilian Czuperski, Eliot Higgins, Frederic Hof, Ben Nimmo, and John E. Herbst

Using digital forensic research and open source investigation methods, Distract Deceive Destroy presents the reality of Russia’s Syrian campaign.

Conflict Disinformation

Report

Apr 5, 2016

An Innovator’s Journey: The Makings of Mexico’s Knowledge Economy

By Arturo Franco

A new report by the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center highlights Mexico’s rarely-told story: a growing global hub for innovation. The paper shows a different side to Mexico, one that is not reflected in the divisive rhetoric on the bilateral relationship emanating from the United States. Instead, a deeper relationship with the new […]

Mexico

Report

Apr 5, 2016

Ukraine v. Russia and the Kleptocrats

By Alan Riley

In this new report from the Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, Alan Riley proposes new legal avenues that Ukraine can pursue to recover asset losses resulting from corruption under the Yanukovych regime and Russian occupation of Ukrainian territory. In this new report from the Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, Alan Riley proposes new legal avenues that Ukraine […]

Corruption Democratic Transitions

Books

Apr 4, 2016

The Great Acceleration: An Environmental History of the Anthropocene since 1945

By J. R. McNeill and Peter Engelke

The Earth has entered a new age—the Anthropocene—in which humans are the most powerful influence on global ecology. Since the mid-twentieth century, the accelerating pace of energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, and population growth has thrust the planet into a massive uncontrolled experiment. The Great Acceleration explains its causes and consequences, highlighting the role of […]

Issue Brief

Apr 4, 2016

Securing Ukraine’s energy sector

By Anders Åslund

2015 brought important reforms to Ukraine, particularly in the energy sector. What are the the promises kept and broken by the Post-Maidan government in Ukraine?

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

Issue Brief

Mar 30, 2016

Smart Homes and the Internet of Things

By Greg Lindsay, Beau Woods, and Joshua Corman

Read the Publication (PDF) The Internet of Things (IoT) is the next step in the evolution of wireless networks. Analysts predict the IoT will double in size to nearly 50 billion devices by 2020, comprising a $1.7 trillion market. One of the greatest opportunities still lies ahead in the form of the “smart home.”  

Cybersecurity Security & Defense

Report

Mar 29, 2016

Climate change and US national security: Past, present, future

By Peter Engelke and Daniel Chiu

What is the the past, present, and future of climate security in the United States? The question going forward is whether climate security will remain restricted to discussions within academia, civil society, and a few dedicated places within the US government, or if it will acquire a more pivotal role in the formulation of US national security strategy.

Climate Change & Climate Action Energy & Environment
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