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 4, 2023

Feldman-Piltch in Non-State Actress on US withdrawal from Afghanistan

By Maggie Feldman-Piltch

On January 4, Transatlantic Security Initiative nonresident senior fellow Maggie Feldman-Piltch wrote a blog post in Non-State Actress, discussing the cost of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan   The Non-State Actress project is made possible by generous support from the German Federal Foreign Office, whom we thank for their support.

Afghanistan Conflict

In the News

Jan 4, 2023

Svetlova in the Jerusalem Strategic Tribune: Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich: Israel’s Power Couple

By Atlantic Council

International Norms Israel

In the News

Jan 4, 2023

Svetlova quoted by NPR on Ben-Gvir’s visit to Jerusalem

By Atlantic Council

International Norms Israel

In the News

Jan 3, 2023

Hellendoorn quoted by Politico on EU considerations of outbound investment controls

Read the full article here.

Economy & Business European Union

In the News

Jan 3, 2023

Guevara in El Heraldo de Mexico on Mexico’s defense priorities for 2023 (in Spanish)

By Inigo Guevara Moyano

On January 3, the Transatlantic Security Initiative’s Nonresident Senior Fellow Inigo Guevara authored an op-ed in El Heraldo de Mexico discussing Mexico’s defense priorities for the upcoming year.

Mexico Security & Defense

In the News

Jan 3, 2023

Garlauskas Interviewed on VOA

On December 31, IPSI Nonresident Senior Fellow Markus Garlauskas appeared on VOA to discuss the increasingly difficult and complex challenge of deterring North Korean aggression. Garlauskas explains that, now adding to the challenge of deterrence, is the interconnectivity between China and North Korea. Watch the full interview for more insights on the capabilities of the […]

Korea Nuclear Deterrence

In the News

Jan 3, 2023

Lipner interviewed by Formiche on PM Netanyahu’s promise to expand Abraham Accords

By Atlantic Council

Israel Italian

In the News

Jan 2, 2023

CBDC Tracker cited by The American Banker on the prospects of CBDC project development in 2023.

Read the full article here.

Digital Currencies Economy & Business

In the News

Jan 2, 2023

Brzezinski in TVN24 discussing the importance of defense investment in Poland and Germany

By Ian Brzezinski

On January 2, Transatlantic Security Initiative Fellow Ian Brzezinski was quoted in TVN24 discussing the importance of investing in defense and modernization efforts for Poland and Germany (text in Polish).

Europe & Eurasia Germany

In the News

Jan 2, 2023

CBDC tracker cited in American Banker on 2023 CBDC pilots

Read the full article here.

Digital Currencies Economy & Business