Europe & Eurasia

Europe & Eurasia

Stretching from the shores of the Atlantic to the mountains of Central Asia, the European and Eurasian landmass contains both some of the most stable and wealthy countries in the world, as well as some of the poorest and those led by repressive regimes. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in 2022 has transformed the region’s security and launched economic, political, and defense issues into the global limelight, emphasizing the necessity of increased regional and transatlantic cooperation.

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Featured Reading

NATO Chief: Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps

Inflection Points
Jun 26, 2026

Secretary General Mark Rutte on Trump, Europe, and the future of NATO

By
Frederick Kempe

Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe sits down with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington.

Europe & Eurasia
NATO

NATO Chief: Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps

Dispatches
May 22, 2026

Washington’s latest force posture moves have Europeans feeling whiplash

By
Daniel Fried, Torrey Taussig

The announcement on sending US troops to Poland didn’t stop Washington’s other force posture decisions from generating concern among NATO allies.

Eastern Europe
Europe & Eurasia

NATO Chief: Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps

Atlantic Council Strategy Paper Series
May 13, 2026

A US and allied strategy for Greenland

By
the Atlantic Council Task Force on Greenland

After US rhetoric about taking control of Greenland exacerbated tensions between Washington and European allies in January, the US, Greenland, and Denmark opened discussions about the US presence in the autonomous territory. In parallel, the Atlantic Council’s Task Force on Greenland brought together transatlantic expertise to explore the underlying issues and find a productive path forward.

Greenland
Northern Europe

featured events

Online Event
Thu, June 25, 2026 • 1:45 pm ET

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on the Ankara summit agenda

AN AC FRONT PAGE EVENT—NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte lays out his priorities for the upcoming Ankara summit.

Europe & Eurasia
NATO
United States and Canada


Public Event
Wed, November 19, 2025 • 9:00 am ET

Intent to destroy: Confronting Russia’s campaign to erase Ukraine and its people

In this conference hosted by the Strategic Litigation Project and the Eurasia Center, experts will identify strategies to halt Russia’s campaign of atrocities against the Ukrainian people.

Civil Society
Conflict
Crisis Management
Security & Defense


The Russia Tomorrow series

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 challenged much of the common Western understanding of Russia. How can the world better understand Russia? What are the steps forward for Western policy? The Eurasia Center’s new “Russia Tomorrow” series seeks to reevaluate conceptions of Russia today and better prepare for its future tomorrow.

Read More

Russia Tomorrow

The CRINK: Inside the new bloc supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine

by Angela Stent

The latest report in the Atlantic Council’s Russia Tomorrow series details how Russia’s war against Ukraine has brought together a new set of partners–united not by shared values, but by shared grievances–on the international stage: China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea.

In-depth Research & reports

NATO Chief: Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps

Russia Tomorrow
Dec 12, 2025

The Russian economy in 2025: Between stagnation and militarization 

By
Elina Ribakova, Lucas Risinger

The latest report in the Atlantic Council’s Russia Tomorrow series examines the Russian wartime economy.

Economy & Business
Europe & Eurasia

NATO Chief: Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps

Report
Jan 14, 2026

Digital sovereignty: Europe’s declaration of independence?

By
Frances Burwell, Kenneth Propp

In Brussels, “digital sovereignty” may be the new “strategic autonomy”: a push for Europe to go its own way and depend less on the United States. As US tech companies and EU regulators clash, catch up on a policy debate with consequences playing out online and in the halls of power.

Digital Policy
Economy & Business

programs

The Europe Center promotes the transatlantic leadership and strategies required to ensure a strong Europe.

EXPLORE THE PROGRAM

The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia and Central Asia in the East.

EXPLORE THE PROGRAM

Within the Atlantic Council’s longstanding commitment to strengthening the transatlantic relationship, the Atlantic Council Turkey Program conducts research, provides thought leadership, and offers a platform for strategic dialogue between the US, Turkey, and NATO allies to address the region’s toughest challenges and explore opportunities, including in the fields of energy, business & trade, technology, defense, and security.

Learn more

Explore the Power Vertical podcast

The Power Vertical

The Power Vertical is a blog and podcast for Russia wonks and Kremlin watchers by Brian Whitmore. It covers emerging and developing trends in Russian politics, shining a spotlight on the high-stakes power struggles, machinations, and clashing interests that shape Kremlin policy today.

Explore the Debrief series

#AtlanticDebrief

#AtlanticDebrief hosts interviews with leading experts, policymakers, and newsmakers from both sides of the Atlantic to unpack the challenges and opportunities of the transatlantic relationship.

Explore the Series


#BalkansDebrief

The Atlantic Council Europe Center’s #BalkansDebrief series features timely conversations on key issues impacting the Western Balkans. Nonresident senior fellow Ilva Tare hosts newsmakers, experts, and officials for discussions on rule of law, energy security, cultural heritage, Russian and Chinese influence in the region, and more.

Explore the Series

Content

NATOSource

Feb 1, 2013

NATO Chief: Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps

By Adrian Croft, Reuters

From Adrian Croft, Reuters:  France’s need for U.S. help during the Mali operation shows Europe must do more to fill worrying gaps in its defenses, NATO’s chief said on Thursday.

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jan 31, 2013

Mali: Now What?

By Julian Lindley-French

Oscar Wilde once wrote “One of the many lessons that one learns in prison is that things are what they are and will be what they will be.” As I witness the French, British, and other Europeans rush to offer their very little militaries in support of an expanding Mali mission I am reminded of that […]

Sahel United Kingdom

NATOSource

Jan 31, 2013

Rasmussen: In 2012, NATO ‘sought to broaden its partnerships and reinforce existing ones’

By Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO

From Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO:  At a time of complex and unpredictable global risks and threats, delivering security must be a cooperative effort. NATO continues to strengthen its connections with other countries and organisations around the globe, reflecting the commitment to cooperative security outlined in the 2010 Strategic Concept.

European Union International Organizations

NATOSource

Jan 30, 2013

RAF assumes command of air component of the NATO Response Force

By Britain's Ministry of Defense

From Britain’s Ministry of Defense:  The current incumbents, the German Air Force, were represented by Brigadier General Nolte at a handover of the NRF lead duty to the RAF’s JFACC Air Commodore Martin Sampson at an official ceremony at HQ Air Command.

United Kingdom

NATOSource

Jan 30, 2013

Advisor: EU could deploy peace force in post-conflict Syria

By Adrian Croft, Reuters

From Adrian Croft, Reuters:  European Union planners are looking at ways to help stabilize Syria when the civil war is over, and sending an EU military force to keep the peace could be an option, the bloc’s top military officer said on Tuesday.

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jan 30, 2013

Hands Across the Atlantic

By Chris Brummer and Frederick Kempe

Like Don Quixote’s pining for his princess Dulcinea, the generation-long quest for a U.S.-EU free trade agreement has been mostly an affair of fit and fantasy — that is, until now. In the last year, leaders across Europe have increasingly pushed for a new trade pact with the United States, their top trading partner, and […]

Economy & Business European Union

NATOSource

Jan 29, 2013

Europe’s army?

By Paul Ames, Global Post

From Paul Ames, Global Post:  [T]here are few troops anywhere in the world better prepared for their task than the marines, foreign legionaries, and other elite French units rolling north to confront the Jihadist militants controlling much of Mali.

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jan 29, 2013

Britain’s History of Hedging on Europe

By Rajan Menon

First there was talk of a possible “Grexit,” the forced departure of a bankrupt Greece from the EU. Now, with British prime minister David Cameron’s Wednesday announcement that he will put the question of the UK’s continued membership to vote should his Conservative Party win the 2015 election, there’s speculation about what might be called […]

European Union International Organizations

New Atlanticist

Jan 28, 2013

Europe and the Holocaust

By Julian Lindley-French

Yesterday was Holocaust Memorial Day, the sixty-eighth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by Soviet forces which last year I visited to pay homage to the murdered. Here in the Netherlands Anne Frank wrote “In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. I simply can’t build up my hopes […]

Europe & Eurasia

NATOSource

Jan 28, 2013

Mali and the demise of the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy

By Giovanni Faleg, Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS)

From Giovanni Faleg, Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS):  For those who believed that the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) was still in good shape after Libya and looked with hope at the new missions launched last summer in the Horn of Africa, South Sudan, and Niger, the unfortunate news is that the tide […]

European Union International Organizations
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Experts

Expert

Defne Arslan

Senior Director

Atlantic Council Turkey Program

Economy & Business Energy & Environment

Staff

Rayhan Asat

Senior Legal & Policy Advisor, China Lead

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Central Asia China

European Leadership Accelerator Participant

Anna Ascani

Vice President of the Chamber, Italy Chamber of Deputies

Millennium Leadership Program

Central Europe Education

Fellow

David Auerswald

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security Transatlantic Security Initiative

Defense Policy Europe & Eurasia

Executive Leadership Intensive participant

Olivia Azadegan

Senior Energy Manager, Global Methane Hub

Millennium Leadership Program

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

Active affiliation

Olena Babakova

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Europe Center

Central Europe Europe & Eurasia
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Events

Flagship Event Fri, December 11, 2026 • 8:30 am ET

2026 Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics

The Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics is an annual flagship convening focused on issues at the nexus of economics, finance, foreign policy, and national security.
Digital Policy Economy & Business Europe & Eurasia European Union