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

Jan 30, 2023

Karatnycky in the American Spectator: Tucker Carlson and Ukraine: Undoing the Reagan Legacy

By Atlantic Council

Media Politics & Diplomacy

In the News

Jan 30, 2023

Global Sanctions Dashboard included in the Cyberwire daily briefing

Read the full article here.

Economy & Business Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

In the News

Jan 30, 2023

Blakemore quoted in Roll Call on Chinese EV battery demand

China Energy & Environment

In the News

Jan 30, 2023

Kroenig and Ashford debate the impact of German and US tanks on the war in Ukraine

On January 27, Foreign Policy published its biweekly "It's Debatable" column featuring Scowcroft Center deputy director Matthew Kroenig and Emma Ashford assessing the latest news in international affairs.

Europe & Eurasia Politics & Diplomacy

In the News

Jan 30, 2023

“Guide to the Global Economy” research featured in Politico newsletter

Read the full newsletter here.

Economy & Business Macroeconomics

In the News

Jan 30, 2023

Townsend in Business Insider on how the war in Ukraine has brought NATO together

On January 30, Townsend was quoted in Business Insider discussing how war in Ukraine has brought NATO together.

Europe & Eurasia NATO

In the News

Jan 29, 2023

Townsend in The National Herald on balancing NATO interests despite feuds between Turkey and Greece

On January 29, Townsend was quoted in The National Herald claiming US has been able to balance its interests within NATO with Greece and Turkey for years despite feuds between them.

Europe & Eurasia Greece

In the News

Jan 28, 2023

Townsend featured on Deutsche Welle on Kyiv’s warning of Russian spring offensives

By James J. Townsend Jr.

On January 28, Transatlantic Security Initiative senior advisor Jim Townsend was quoted in Deutsche Welle on Kyiv’s warning of Russian spring offensives.

Conflict Europe & Eurasia

In the News

Jan 28, 2023

Nikoladze quoted by the Sanctions Association on challenges of inconsistent sanctions listings, Russia Sanctions Database cited

Read the full article here.

Economy & Business Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

In the News

Jan 28, 2023

Townsend in Deutsche Welle on Kyiv’s warning of spring Russian offensives

On January 28, Townsend was quoted in Deutsche Welle discussing Kyiv’s warning of Russian spring offensives

Defense Policy Europe & Eurasia