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

Aug 20, 2015

Herbst on Military Implications of the Ukraine Conflict

By John Herbst

The World Post quotes Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center Director John E. Herbst on Russia’s gradual incursion into Ukraine:

Russia Ukraine

In the News

Aug 20, 2015

FCW Features Cyber Risk Wednesday

By Atlantic Council

Federal Computer Week features the Atlantic Council’s Cyber Risk Wednesday event on recent intrusions into sensitive US government systems such as the Office of Personal Management (OPM):

Cybersecurity Security & Defense

In the News

Aug 20, 2015

Barno and Bensahel: Female Rangers Should End the Debate About Women in Combat

By Dave Barno and Nora Bensahel

Brent Scowcroft Center Nonresident Senior Fellows for Military Affairs and National Security Policy Dave Barno and Nora Bensahel write for TIME on the developing debate regarding the role of women in combat positions, in light of the two women graduating from Army Ranger School:

In the News

Aug 20, 2015

Pham on US Role in Fight Against al-Shabaab

By J. Peter Pham

Africa Center Director J. Peter Pham joins Al Jazeera America to discuss increasing US support in the fight against al-Shabaab, despite the persistence of the group:

Somalia

In the News

Aug 19, 2015

Ricciardone on Dolmabahce Palace Attack

By Francis J. Ricciardone

Bloomberg quotes Vice President and Rafik Hariri Center Director Francis J. Ricciardone on Turkish leftist extremists attacking a guard post at Istanbul’s Dolmabahce Palace:

Turkey

In the News

Aug 19, 2015

Itani on US-Lebanon Military Cooperation

By Faysal Itani

The Huffington Post quotes Rafik Hariri Center Resident Fellow Faysal Itani on Hezbollah’s role in the Syrian conflict and closer cooperation between the United States and the Lebanese military: 

Middle East

In the News

Aug 19, 2015

Tanchum: India’s Changing Energy Policy

By Micha'el Tanchum

Eurasian Energy Futures Initiative Nonresident Senior Fellow Micha’el Tanchum writes for Asia & The Pacific Policy Society on India’s move toward a natural gas-powered economy and its increase in domestically produced coal bed methane: 

Energy & Environment India

In the News

Aug 18, 2015

Herbst on Military Support in Ukraine

By John Herbst

Center for European Policy Analysis quotes Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center Director John E. Herbst on the military imperative to support Ukraine if Russia renews its military campaign:

Russia Ukraine

In the News

Aug 18, 2015

Saab on Gulf Military Strategy

By Bilal Y. Saab

The National quotes Brent Scowcroft Center Resident Senior Fellow for Middle East Security Bilal Y. Saab on the announcement that the US navy is removing its sole aircraft carrier from the Gulf:

In the News

Aug 18, 2015

New Pathway Features Hiding in Plain Sight

By Atlantic Council

New Pathway features the Atlantic Council presentation of Hiding in Plain Sight in Toronto, where the authors discussed the role of Russian soldiers in the war in Ukraine:

Russia Ukraine