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

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

Econographics

Jun 18, 2026

For warning signs of the next global financial crisis, watch the activities of both banks and nonbanks

By Hung Tran

The activities that trigger financial crises can be undertaken by any financial institution, including both banks and nonbanks.

Economy & Business

Latest in-depth research and reports

Content

In the News

Aug 16, 2023

CBDC tracker cited by the Japan Times on countries launching digital currencies

Read the full piece here.

Digital Currencies Economy & Business

In the News

Aug 16, 2023

Cynkin interviewed by VOA ahead of Trilateral Leaders’ Summit at Camp David

On August 15, IPSI Nonresident Senior Fellow Thomas Cynkin was interviewed by VOA Korea ahead of the Camp David Trilateral Summit on August 18. Cynkin explains, “So it’s possible that there’ll be a successor in any of these capitals that could have less affinity for the idea of this trilateral cooperation. I think therefore it’s doubly […]

Indo-Pacific Japan

In the News

Aug 16, 2023

Kirchberger in Kieler Nachrichten on concerns of Chinese espionage

By Sarah Kirchberger

On August 16, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security nonresident senior fellow Sarah Kirchberger was interviewed by Kieler Nachrichten in which she discussed cooperation with Chinese scientists and concerns of potential espionage (text in German).  

China Security & Defense

In the News

Aug 16, 2023

Wieslander interviewed on TV 4 Nyhetsmorgon

On Tuesday, August 15, Anna Wieslander, director for Northern Europe, participated in TV4 Nyhetsmorgon to discuss why Sweden’s entry into NATO is delayed. “The agreement coincided with the summer break of the parliaments that must ratify Sweden’s NATO membership. [Sweden] could, however, have worked faster than October, which has been suggested as the date for […]

NATO Northern Europe

In the News

Aug 16, 2023

Nonresident senior fellow Dexter Tiff Roberts quoted in Business Insider on Chinese housing market slump

On August 16, 2023, nonresident senior fellow Dexter Tiff Robert was quoted by Business Insider about how the decline of the Chinese real estate market poses a challenge for the Chinese government.

China Economy & Business

In the News

Aug 16, 2023

“Politicization of the Chinese economy” Nonresident senior fellow Dexter Tiff Roberts on Bloomberg Businessweek Podcast

On August 16, 2023, nonresident senior fellow Dexter Tiff Roberts spoke to Bloomberg Businessweek about how Xi Jinping’s “politicization of the Chinese economy” is contributing to China’s economic woes.

China Economy & Business

In the News

Aug 15, 2023

Roberts quoted in Trend News Agency on the Trans-Caspian gas project

Eastern Europe Energy & Environment

In the News

Aug 15, 2023

Feldman-Piltch in Non-State Actress Podcast: Episode 2

By Maggie Feldman-Piltch

On August 15, Transatlantic Security Initiative nonresident senior fellow Maggie Feldman-Piltch published the second episode of the “Non-State Actress” podcast series in which she interviewed Erica DeKranes—who serves as Councilwoman of Allentown, NJ and a senior resource mobilization officer for Vision Spring—for a conversation on how interconnected the world is and the important role that […]

Defense Technologies Europe & Eurasia

In the News

Aug 15, 2023

Webster in The Diplomat: Will a China-Led Global Recession Influence Beijing’s Russia Policy

Economy & Business Energy & Environment

In the News

Aug 15, 2023

Arbit and Shalomov in The Diplomatic World: Women Will Be the Biggest Victims of Israel’s Judicial Reforms

By Atlantic Council

Israel Middle East