Insights and impact

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.

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Featured content

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

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Explore the podcast series

NATO 20/2020 Podcast

NATO 20/2020 is a weekly podcast that explores 20 bold ideas to push NATO to be more visionary, more capable, and more self-evidently valuable to the security of more people.

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.

Artwork by Peter Kuper

In the News

Dec 17, 2020

The Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center partners with LEADERS Magazine to dedicate an entire issue to resilience

For its Fall/Winter issue of 2020, LEADERS Magazine, asked the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center to produce an issue dedicated to resilience. The Resilience Issue assembles a broad range of global thought leaders and experts who are currently tackling the challenges and crises facing the world from different perspectives.

Insights & Impact

Mar 3, 2020

Peering Around the Corner: The Geopolitics of Coronavirus

By Atlantic Council

On February 11, 2020 the DFRLab hosted "Peering Around the Corner: The Geopolitics of Coronavirus," a timely series of panels on the potential geopolitical and economic consequences of Coronavirus, and how misinformation about the crisis may influence its impact.

China Disinformation

Program Impact Story

Feb 6, 2020

US energy priorities abroad: A conversation with US Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette

By Global Energy Center

On Friday, February 7, 2020, the Atlantic Council hosted newly appointed US Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette for a public address and moderated discussion about US government energy priorities abroad.

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Latest commentary and analysis

UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2026

Ukraine can do more to counter Russia’s illicit finance threat

By Matthew McGlynn

For more than four years, Ukraine has impressed global audiences with the country’s ability to defend itself against Russia on land, at sea, and in the air. Illicit finance is another important front in the fight against Russian aggression, writes Matthew McGlynn.

Conflict Cybersecurity

EnergySource

Sep 17, 2026

What von der Leyen’s SOTU speech got right about energy—and where the EU still needs to pivot

By Atlantic Council experts

The EU State of the Union address recognizes important energy system challenges but also leaves details on actions murky.

Energy & Environment Energy Transitions

UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2026

Putin is escalating against NATO but a Baltic incursion remains unlikely

By James Rice

The recent escalation in Russian gray zone aggression across Europe has sparked a lively debate over how far the Kremlin may be prepared to go, but a Russian attack on the Baltic states remains unlikely, writes James Rice.

Conflict European Union
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Latest in-depth research and reports

Issue Brief

Sep 17, 2026

Fortifying USMCA through US–Mexico investment screening coordination

By the US–Mexico Binational Task Force on Economic Security and Competitiveness

One of the biggest blind spots in the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement is its treatment of capital and foreign investment screening. The current review presents an opportunity to address this and build a safer North America.

Critical Infrastructure Policy Economy & Business

Report

Sep 17, 2026

New voices, old friends: How Russia targets its messaging in the Global South

By Casey Michel

The latest report in the Atlantic Council's Russia Tomorrow series examines the themes and methods that Russia uses to target audiences in the Global South.

Africa Civil Society

In-Depth Research & Reports

Sep 11, 2026

Submission to the UN: Advancing the just repatriation of illicit funds 

By Britt Gronemeyer, Celeste Kmiotek

How can the UN and the international community ensure that when illicit funds are seized, victims of the illicit activity benefit? The Atlantic Council's Strategic Litigation Program contributed a brief to the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights with six key recommendations on the subject.

Corruption Financial Crimes & Illicit Trade
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Content

In the News

Aug 21, 2026

Eftimiades interviewed on China Insider Podcast on Chinese intelligence operations

By Atlantic Council

On July 10, Forward Defense Nonresident Senior Fellow Nicholas Eftimiades was interviewed on the China Insider Podcast to discuss trends in Chinese Communist Party espionage. He highlighted an uptick in economic espionage and concerns around forms of intelligence collection efforts, and provided history around how China’s intelligence apparatus is constructed.

China Intelligence

In the News

Aug 21, 2026

Eftimiades interviewed on NTD Newsroom on Chinese shipment masking

By Atlantic Council

On August 15, Forward Defense Nonresident Senior Fellow Nicholas Eftimiades appeared on NTD Newsroom to discuss industrial-scale Chinese shipment masking. He highlighted a variety of methods used to mask shipments and argued that transshipment networks have grown after tariff increases. He also discussed China’s espionage tactics.

China Intelligence

In the News

Aug 17, 2026

Ahmed Charai for The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune: Jared Kushner’s Gaza Strategy Could Reshape the Middle East

By Atlantic Council

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

In the News

Aug 12, 2026

Rudolph and VerGow published in RealClearDefense on innovation in the Navy

By Atlantic Council

On August 12, Forward Defense Assistant Director Abigail Rudolph and Non-Resident Senior Fellow Joshua VerGow were published in RealClearDefense, discussing the US Navy’s decision to reclassify 19 Virginia-class submarines. In this article, Rudolph and Vergow argue that the reclassification of these submarines exemplifies the Navy’s broader embrace of Distributed Maritime Operations and suggests that meaningful […]

Security & Defense Technology & Innovation

In the News

Aug 7, 2026

Nikoladze cited in Senator Rand Paul’s remarks on his proposed amendment to Russia Sanctions Bill

Read the full remarks here

In the News

Aug 7, 2026

Lichfield interviewed on Global Dispatches to discuss the widening deficit in Russia

Listen to the full interview here

In the News

Aug 7, 2026

Lichfield quoted in the Japan Times on the US defending its own Treasury yields. 

Read the full article here

In the News

Aug 7, 2026

Tran quoted in CNN Business on Japan’s persistently low interest rates and its relation to the yen

Read the full article here

In the News

Aug 7, 2026

Chhangani cited in Foreign Policy on e-CNY transaction volumes

Read the full article here

In the News

Aug 7, 2026

Nikoladze interviewed by NPR on the importance to implement and enforce the Russia Sanctions Bill correctly

Listen to the full interview here

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