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

Jul 17, 2023

Charai in the National Interest: Sweden’s NATO Accession Limits Putin’s Options

By Ahmed Charai

The Western powers are now more united with the Baltic nations than ever before. After months of diplomatic delays, Sweden can now join NATO—a genuine triumph for the Biden administration. This development has enormous geostrategic implications for the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia. Ahmed Charai is a Moroccan publisher and an Atlantic Council Board Director. He […]

Conflict Europe & Eurasia

In the News

Jul 17, 2023

“New Rules for Stablecoins and the Future of Payments” event featured in Politico

Read the full newsletter here.

Digital Currencies Digital Policy

In the News

Jul 17, 2023

Tran quoted in Reuters on Chinese export controls

Read the full article here.

China Economy & Business

In the News

Jul 17, 2023

Tantardini in Longitude on the future of human spaceflight

By Atlantic Council

Marco Tantardini discusses the future of human spaceflight.

China Economy & Business

In the News

Jul 17, 2023

Feldman-Piltch in Non-State Actress on Senate holds on military confirmations

By Maggie Feldman-Piltch

On July 17, Transatlantic Security Initiative nonresident senior fellow Maggie Feldman-Piltch wrote the latest edition of her project “Non-State Actress.” In this edition, Feldman-Piltch explained what it means when a single Senator holds up all military confirmations and promotions and the implications for American governance. The Non-State Actress project is made possible by generous support […]

Defense Technologies Europe & Eurasia

In the News

Jul 17, 2023

“New Rules for Stablecoins and the Future of Payments” event featured in Politico

Read the full newsletter here.

Digital Currencies Digital Policy

In the News

Jul 17, 2023

Graham quoted in the VOA on Russian sanctions evasion

Read the full article here.

China Economy & Business

In the News

Jul 16, 2023

Cohen in Forbes: Putin’s threats to Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power plant endangers energy transition

By Atlantic Council

Energy Transitions Nuclear Energy

In the News

Jul 16, 2023

Lipsky quoted in Business Insider on de-dollarization

Read the full article here.

Economy & Business Financial Regulation

In the News

Jul 16, 2023

Rich Outzen joins i24News to discuss the escalation in the Gulf

Maritime Security Middle East