On July 21, the Atlantic Council Program on International Security hosted a workshop in partnership with Allied Command Transformation, the first in a series of conferences examining the importance of the maritime, space and cyber components of international security, collectively termed the global commons. 

Experts in each field provided an overview of the challenges and opportunities associated with each global commons domain, examining questions of definition and framework, NATO’s potential role as a global forum for deliberations and norm setting, as well as practical Alliance issues related to capabilities, missions, and roles.  Participants across the transatlantic community provided an array of perspectives on the political and military dynamics and challenges related to NATO’s role in the global commons. The second workshop on this strategic issue will be co-hosted by the Security and Defense Agenda in Brussels in September, to gain additional European perspectives on NATO’s future role in the global commons.