About the Council

The Atlantic Council promotes constructive leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the Atlantic Community’s central role in meeting global challenges. The Council provides an essential forum for navigating the dramatic economic and political changes defining the twenty-first century by informing and galvanizing its uniquely influential network of global leaders. Through the papers we write, the ideas we generate, and the communities we build, the Council shapes policy choices and strategies to create a more secure and prosperous world.

NATO 20/2020

Twenty bold ideas to reimagine the Alliance after the 2020 US election

More than two decades after NATO’s inspired decision to invite former adversaries to join its ranks, the Alliance is in need of equally captivating ideas. The essays in this volume are intended to push the Alliance to think boldly and creatively in the service of recapturing the public’s imagination.

Read our provocative essays on the future of NATO

Explore the podcast series

Making a difference

Learn more about the Atlantic Council’s insights & impact through these stories of how our regional and thematic programs are making a difference not only in shaping how we view global issues but also in shaping their outcome.

Latest commentary and analysis


Econographics

Jun 19, 2026

Central banks can’t afford to keep missing their inflation targets

By
Jack Muldoon

While the Iran war explains the sudden rise in inflation, relying on this excuse obscures that there is potentially a long-term problem central banks will need to confront as they manage the long tail of this crisis.


Economy & Business


Macroeconomics


UkraineAlert

Jun 18, 2026

Putin’s obsession with ‘denazifying’ Ukraine makes peace impossible

By
Peter Dickinson

Putin’s obsession with “denazifying” Ukraine makes a mockery of efforts to portray the Russian invasion as a mere land grab and helps explain why there has been no meaningful progress toward peace despite more than a year of US-led efforts, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Disinformation


Podcast

Jun 18, 2026

“Shoot everybody”: US contractors in San Diego court

By
Alia Brahimi

In Season 2, Episode 16 of the Guns for Hire podcast, host Alia Brahimi is joined by Daniel McLaughlin, an international lawyer and Legal Director of the Centre for Justice and Accountability (CJA), a California-based legal nonprofit working on behalf of victims of torture and other atrocity crimes. Daniel and CJA are leading a civil suit in San Diego against a Delaware-registered PMC, Spear Operations Group, for war crimes in Yemen. They represent the Yemeni parliamentarian Anssaf Ali Mayo, who was one of the targets of an alleged hit-squad in Yemen. Daniel talks us through the facts of the case, how it ended up in a California courtroom ten years later, and which US and international laws were ostensibly broken by the PMC. He also argues forcefully that the US government has a duty to regulate how former members of its military use their training and know-how.


Middle East


Rule of Law

Latest in-depth research and reports

Content

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Pham on First Chinese Military Base in Africa

By J. Peter Pham

Digital Journal quotes Africa Center Director J. Peter Pham on the first Chinese military base in Africa, which will be located in Djibouti where the United States also has its only permanent military base on the continent:

Africa China

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Hasik on the Defense Department Acquisitions Process

By James Hasik

Aviation Week quotes Brent Scowcroft Center Resident Senior Fellow for Defense James Hasik on the Defense Department acquisitions process and how the Defense Department can more quickly begin the acquisition process:

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Hasik: JSF: The Jet That Ate the Pentagon

By James Hasik

Brent Scowcroft Center Resident Senior Fellow for Defense James Hasik writes for Real Clear Defense on the Department of Defense’s acquistion system and the future of the Joint Striike Fighter program:

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Marczak on Elections in Venezuela

By Jason Marczak

CNBC quotes Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center Deputy Director Jason Marczak on the divide in votes between Venezuals’s current government and the oppositon:

Venezuela

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Ullman: Qualified to Run the Country?

By Harlan Ullman

Atlantic Council Senior Advisor Harlan Ullman writes for United Press International on the discrepancies in the qualifications of the top Republican party candidates for president: 

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Hof on Commando Raids

By Frederic C. Hof

Bloomberg quotes Rafik Hariri Center Resident Senior Fellow Frederic C. Hof on the best strategies to fight ISIS:

Syria

In the News

Nov 30, 2015

Eljarh on ISIS in Libya

By Mohamed Eljarh

Rafik Hariri Center Nonresident Fellow Mohamed Eljarh joins CNN to discuss the tightening grip of ISIS militants in Sirte, Libya: 

Libya

In the News

Nov 29, 2015

Alami: Tactics Daash Renewed Combat Climate Change Atmosphere

By Mona Alami

Rafik Hariri Center Nonresident Fellow Mona Alami writes for Asharq Al-Awsat on ISIS’s evolving military tactics Read the full article here.

In the News

Nov 29, 2015

Aslund: “Turkey Would Act in the Same Fashion”

By Anders Aslund

Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center Resident Senior Fellow Anders Aslund joins CTV to disucss the impact of Russian sanctions on Turkey after a Russian jet  was shot down: 

Russia Turkey

In the News

Nov 29, 2015

Pham on Chinese Military in Africa

By J. Peter Pham

ValueWalk quotes Africa Center Director J. Peter Pham on the inevitability of China establishing military bases in Africa:

Africa China