Successfully operating in foreign markets requires a deep understanding of the political, economic and social environment.
Global Network
Our 300 + senior advisors and fellows drawn from the fields of politics, diplomacy, security and defense, business and academia, are regionally and locally-connected across the world.
North-America
Western Europe, United States, Multilateralism
Dr. Peter Ammon
Dr. Peter Ammon is a German senior diplomat (ret.) and former German Sate Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dr. Ammon served as Ambassador of Germany to the United Kongdom, the United States, and France. Among the mainstays of his long diplomatic career were supporting German companies and investors to navigate the pitfalls of globalization and assisting German chancellors in G7/G8 negotiations.
United States, Transatlantic Relations, Urban Public Policy
Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook
Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook is Executive Vice President/Senior Advisor at the Bertelsmann Stiftung in Berlin and also a Non-Resident Fellow at the Global Public Policy Institute. Previously, she served as Director and CEO at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP). From 2010 to 2021, Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook acted as founding director of the Future of Diplomacy Project and director of the Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship, both at the Harvard Kennedy School in the US.
Western Europe, United States,
Corporate Government Affairs
Dr. Harald Braun
Dr. Harald Braun looks back at a successful diplomatic career, including his role as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador to the United Nations, as well as postings in London, Paris, Washington, D.C., Africa, and the Middle East. He was also Corporate Senior Vice President for Group Policy and External Affairs at Siemens AG (2005–2008). Currently, he serves as Dean of the Agora Strategy Institute.
Law, Public Administration, International Development/ International Political Economy
Juan Ignacio Carranza
Juan Ignacio Carranza, based in Washington D.C., US, is a lawyer with professional experience on three continents, working over ten years on geopolitical and legal issues for congressmen, mayors, and ministers. Previously, he worked as a legal advisor for the National Chamber of Deputies in the Argentine Congress and taught constitutional law principles and human rights at the University of Buenos Aires. He was also the Chief of Staff of the OECD Office of the National Treasury of Argentina (2016-2019) and a legal advisor in the Legal Secretariat of Buenos Aires City Government.
MENA Region, U.S. Foreign Policy
Jasmine El-Gamal
Jasmine El-Gamal is a political analyst in London, UK, focusing on U.S. foreign policy and the Middle East. She was a Senior Fellow with the Middle East program at the Atlantic Council (2015–2020). Previously, Jasmine El-Gamal served as a Middle East adviser at the US Pentagon (2008–2013). During her tenure, she covered issues related to Iraq, Syria, the Arab Spring, and ISIS and served as the Acting Chief of Staff for the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East Policy in the US. She was a Special Assistant to three consecutive US Under Secretaries of Defense for Policy (2013–2015).
China, United States, Transportation Industry
Sietse Goffard
Sietse Goffard is Policy Advisor and Project Lead at Boston Housing Authority. Previously, he was a research fellow at Harvard University’s Department of Economics. He studied US–China relations and aviation policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and at Tsinghua University in Beijing, where he was a Schwarzman Scholar. His research has been published by the Brookings Institution, Carter Center, Cato Institute, and National Bureau of Economic Research. At Agora Strategy, Sietse Goffard focuses on topics related to China, aviation and to transportation.
Transatlantic Relations, Multilateralism, Diplomacy and International Governance
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Ischinger
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Ischinger was the Chairman of the Munich Security Conference from 2008 to 2022. Since 2022, he is the President of the Foundation Council of the Munich Security Conference Foundation. He cofounded the Agora Strategy Group in 2015. Ambassador (ret.) Ischinger looks back on a long diplomatic career, including his role as State Secretary in the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs and posts as German ambassador to Washington D.C., and London.
United States, Pakistan, Balkan, Conflict Resolution
Dr. Cameron Munter
Dr. Cameron Munter served as U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan (2010–2012) and to Serbia (2007–2009). Until recently, he was the CEO of the EastWest Institute in New York (2015-2019), a nonprofit organization dedicated to international conflict resolutionwith a focus on Russia, China, the Middle East, South Asia, and the Balkans. He is currently a senior fellow of the CEVRO Institute in Prague and the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C.
Central and South America
Law, Public Administration, International Development/ International Political Economy
Juan Ignacio Carranza
Juan Ignacio Carranza, based in Washington D.C., US, is a lawyer with professional experience on three continents, working over ten years on geopolitical and legal issues for congressmen, mayors, and ministers. Previously, he worked as a legal advisor for the National Chamber of Deputies in the Argentine Congress and taught constitutional law principles and human rights at the University of Buenos Aires. He was also the Chief of Staff of the OECD Office of the National Treasury of Argentina (2016-2019) and a legal advisor in the Legal Secretariat of Buenos Aires City Government.
China, Brazil, International Development, Sustainable Energy
Dr. Irene Giner Reichl
Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl is a former Austrian senior diplomat. Her international postings as Ambassador included China and Mongolia (2012-2017) as well as Brazil and Surinam (2017-2021). Her main areas of expertise are economic and social development, energy and the environment as well as women's rights. Through her role as Austria’s Director General for Development Cooperation, Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl has developed a strong international network. Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl has taught at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna for many years and is an honorary professor at the University of International Business Administration in Beijing.
Mexico
Salomon Sacal Kalach
Salomon Kalach is a strategic advisor with 15 years of multidisciplinary experience across industries in the U.S. and Latin America. Born and raised in Mexico City, he spent the past twenty years in Washington, DC, and New York City. Throughout his career, he has managed the development and implementation of several lobbying engagements, providing legislative, regulatory, and political risk analysis, and leading companies and organizations to capitalize on business opportunities and grow their markets by successfully navigating tough policy and reputational challenges across cultures and languages.
Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Economic Development of the Global South
Dr. Oliver Stuenkel
Dr. Oliver Stuenkel is a political analyst and an Associate Professor of International Relations at the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV) in São Paulo. He is also a non-resident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) in Washington, D.C., a non-resident fellow at the Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi) in Berlin, and a columnist for Estadão and Americas Quarterly. He is the author of numerous books on geopolitics and global order, including “Post-Western World: How emerging powers are remaking global order”.
Spain, Mexico, Europe, Diplomacy
Peter Tempel
Peter Tempel is a German diplomat who served as Ambassador to Spain (2014-2018) and Mexico (2018-2022). Previously, he was Permanent Representative of the Federal Republic of Germany to the EU, Head of the European Department at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin (2006-2010), and Head of Verheugen's Cabinet in the Barroso I Commission. He also served as Permanent Representative of the Head at the Embassy Bamako until 1991 and on the Embassy Council of the Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels until 1997.
Western Europe
Transatlantic Relations, Foreign and security policy towards Iran
Dr. Cornelius Adebahr
Dr. Cornelius Adebahr is Senior Fellow and Editor in Chief at the Agora Strategy Institute. Currently based in Rome, Italy, he works as an independent policy consultant and analyst. His expertise focuses on European and global foreign policy issues. Between 2011 and 2016, Dr. Adebahr lived in Tehran and Washington D.C. His publications include Europe and Iran: The Nuclear Deal and Beyond (Routledge 2017) and Inside Iran: Old Nation, New Power? (Dietz 2018).
Corporate Culture, Political Economy, Value Chains/Finance
Dr. Joseph Baines
Dr. Joseph Baines is a Senior Lecturer in International Political Economy at King’s College London. Before his appointment at King's College, he worked as a Fellow in Comparative Politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Developing original quantitative studies, Joseph's work explores key shifts within the corporate sector, including transformations within global supply chains and financial markets. In pursuing this research agenda, his work has addressed numerous fields such as the political economy of food and energy, corporate taxation, corporate debt, financialization, global value chains, and climate change. He has also written articles for The Guardian and Le Monde, and his work has been covered in The Observer, Bloomberg News and The Financial Times.
Western Europe, United States, Corporate Government Affairs
Dr. Harald Braun
Dr. Harald Braun looks back at a successful diplomatic career, including his role as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador to the United Nations, as well as postings in London, Paris, Washington, D.C., Africa, and the Middle East. He was also Corporate Senior Vice President for Group Policy and External Affairs at Siemens AG (2005–2008). Currently, he serves as Dean of the Agora Strategy Institute.
United States, Transatlantic Relations, Urban Public Policy
Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook
Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook is Executive Vice President/Senior Advisor at the Bertelsmann Stiftung in Berlin and also a Non-Resident Fellow at the Global Public Policy Institute. Previously, she served as Director and CEO at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP). From 2010 to 2021, Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook acted as founding director of the Future of Diplomacy Project and director of the Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship, both at the Harvard Kennedy School in the US.
NATO, European Security and Defense Policy
General (ret.) Hans-Lothar Domröse
Hans-Lothar Domröse is a former senior German Army officer and Four-Star General. He was Commander of the Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum (2012–2016). In 2011, General Domröse was appointed German Military Representative to MC/NATO and the EU in Brussels. From 2009–2012, he took over the command of the Eurocorps in Strasbourg. During a 2008 deployment to Afghanistan, he served as Chief of Staff ISAF HQ. General Domröse received a multitude of awards and decorations during the span of his military career.
Transatlantic Relations, Multilateralism, Diplomacy and International Governance
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Ischinger
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Ischinger was the Chairman of the Munich Security Conference from 2008 to 2022. Since 2022, he is the President of the Foundation Council of the Munich Security Conference Foundation. He cofounded the Agora Strategy Group in 2015. Ambassador (ret.) Ischinger looks back on a long diplomatic career, including his role as State Secretary in the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs and posts as German ambassador to Washington D.C., and London.
France, European Union, Foreign Trade
Pierre Lellouche
Pierre Lellouche is Associate Partner at Agora Strategy and a columnist for the French media outlets Marianne, Le Figaro and Cnews. He is a former French Secretary of State for European Affairs (2009–2010) and Secretary of State for Foreign Trade (2010-2012). Pierre Lellouche was a member of the French National Assembly until 2017, serving in the Committee on Foreign Affairs. He presided the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (2004-2006) and was French Special Envoy to the ITER (thermo-nuclear fusion experimental reactor) negotiations (2003-2005).
Western Europe, United States, Multilateralism
Dr. Peter Ammon
Dr. Peter Ammon is a German senior diplomat (ret.) and former German Sate Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dr. Ammon served as Ambassador of Germany to the United Kongdom, the United States, and France. Among the mainstays of his long diplomatic career were supporting German companies and investors to navigate the pitfalls of globalization and assisting German chancellors in G7/G8 negotiations.
Aerospace, Public Safety
Heinz-Dieter Meier
Heinz-Dieter Meier is a former Director of the German Federal Police (BPOL) and has been working as a consultant in the fields of ICT, IT security, aviation, public security, and satellite-based reconnaissance, as well as Director of amotys, consult GmbH. Previously, he was in the position of a senior advisor at the German Aerospace Center in the field of Earth observation for security authorities and technical coordinator in the European Copernicus program. Heinz-Dieter Meier further gained experience during missions with special forces of the federal and state governments. He led projects on administrative modernisation, quality management and controlling and in 2006 developed the reform of the ICT of the BPOL, which he was allowed to implement as CIO.
United Kingdom, Brexit, EU Politics
Dr. Tim Oliver
Dr. Timothy Oliver is a leading expert on Brexit, UK politics and foreign policy, and international relations. Previously, Dr. Timothy Oliver published Understanding Brexit: A Concise Introduction (2018) and was the editor of Europe’s Brexit: EU Perspectives on Britain’s Vote to Leave (2018).
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Geopolitics in the EU/NATO Neighbourhood, Global Risk Analysis, International Research
Oana Popescu-Zamfir
Oana Popescu-Zamfir is a former State Secretary for EU Affairs and currently Director of GlobalFocus Center, a foreign policy and security think-tank in Romania with a focus on Central and Eastern Europe. She is also an associate researcher with the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) and Europe’s Futures fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna (IWM). Prior, she served as foreign policy adviser to the President of the Romanian Senate, program director of the Aspen Institute Romania, and senior editor of the Romanian edition of Foreign Policy magazine. She is an expert in global political risk and strategic analysis, geopolitics in the EU/NATO neighborhood, transatlantic relations, hybrid threats, as well as shifting models of governance and democratic resilience.
Spain, Mexico, Europe, Diplomacy
Peter Tempel
Peter Tempel is a German diplomat who served as Ambassador to Spain (2014-2018) and Mexico (2018-2022). Previously, he was Permanent Representative of the Federal Republic of Germany to the EU, Head of the European Department at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin (2006-2010), and Head of Verheugen's Cabinet in the Barroso I Commission. He also served as Permanent Representative of the Head at the Embassy Bamako until 1991 and on the Embassy Council of the Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels until 1997.
Industrial Relations, ESG, Investor Relations
Mariel von Schumann
Mariel von Schumann serves on the advisory board of several industrial and service companies. Previously, she held a number of senior management positions in different roles and companies, most recently as Siemens Chief of Staff, also having oversight of the new global strategic company set-up, as well as its government affairs and investor relations.
Eastern Europe and Western Balkans
Ethnic Conflicts, Energy Security, Conflict Resolution, Cyprus Conflict
Dr. Constantinos Adamides
Dr. Constantinos Adamides is an Associate Professor of international relations and deputy head of the Department of Politics and Governance at the University of Nicosia, where he also serves as director of the Diplomatic Academy. He was appointed by President Nicos Anastasiades in 2014 as a member of the first Geostrategic Council of the Republic of Cyprus.
South Eastern Euripe, Politics of Digitalization, International Development
Konstantinos Foutzopoulos
Konstantinos Foutzopoulos is an international relations expert who has professional experience working with a wide range of international organizations, incl. the UN and the World Bank. He served as an international relations adviser to the Prime Minister of Greece. Currently, Konstantinos Foutzopoulos is Executive Director of the think tank Thessaloniki Regional Forum, which aims to enhance economic, political, social, and academic cooperation among Balkan countries.
Poland, EU Affairs, Cybersecurity, Democracy and Rule of Law
Maia Mazurkiewicz
Maia Mazurkiewicz is a political consultant, coordinator of the European Front Polish NGO network, and co-founder of Alliance4Europe, a non-profit organization with the mission of protecting and advancing democracy in Europe. Maia Mazurkiewicz is also a former advisor to the Polish President Bronisław Komorowski. She is a lawyer by training and an expert on disinformation and propaganda.
Caucasus, Silk Road Region
Damjan Krnjević Mišković
Damjan Krnjević Mišković served as a senior political strategist, diplomatic adviser, and crisis counselor at both international and national levels. Currently, he is Professor of Practice and Director of Publications and Policy Research at ADA University in Baku, Aserbaidschan. He also served as Senior Special Adviser and Chief Speechwriter to the President of the UN General Assembly (2012–2013), Senior Adviser to the Foreign Minister (2007–2012) and President (2007–2012) of Serbia.
Serbia, Economic Developments, Decentralization/Enterprise Development
Dragisa Mijacic
Dragisa Mijacic, based in Belgrad, Serbien, is a development consultant, management expert, and policy analyst with more than 20 years of professional experience working for the European Commission and other multilateral and bilateral agencies, as well as governments, private sector institutions, and civil society organizations. His area of expertise is economic governance, territorial cohesion and socio-economic development. He also has a strong portfolio on evaluation of development assistance programmes and projects, working as a senior evaluator for the European Commission, Council of Europe, OSCE, UNDP and many other agencies.
Montenegro, Western Balkans, Sustainability/Development
Igor Milosevic
Igor Milosevic (Montenegro) is the founder and program developer in ADP-Zid. In over 30 years of experience in the civil sector, he was one of the founders of Citizens' Pact for South East Europe, president of Association of printing media in Montenegro, manager in Montenegro advocacy program, member of CDEJ - the body of the Council of Europe (CoE). Founder of the first Living lab in Montenegro focused on the development of social innovation through the use of co-creative methodology and quadruple helix model. He is a member of the board of one of the largest networks for the development of the solidarity economy - DIESIS network.
United States, Pakistan, Balkan, Conflict Resolution
Dr. Cameron Munter
Dr. Cameron Munter served as U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan (2010–2012) and to Serbia (2007–2009). Until recently, he was the CEO of the EastWest Institute in New York (2015-2019), a nonprofit organization dedicated to international conflict resolutionwith a focus on Russia, China, the Middle East, South Asia, and the Balkans. He is currently a senior fellow of the CEVRO Institute in Prague and the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C.
Poland, Russia, Disarmament and Arms Control
Rolf Nikel
Rolf Nikel is a German senior diplomat (ret.), who served as Ambassador to Poland until 2020. Previously, he served as Commissioner for Disarmament and Arms Control and as Head of the UN and Global Issues Group. In the Federal Chancellery, he worked for former Chancellors Kohl (1989–1994), Schröder (1998–2001), and Merkel (2005–2021). He also served at the German embassies in Moscow, Nairobi, Paris, and Washington, D.C.
Geopolitics in the EU/NATO Neighbourhood, Global Risk Analysis, International Research
Oana Popescu-Zamfir
Oana Popescu-Zamfir is a former State Secretary for EU Affairs and currently Director of GlobalFocus Center, a foreign policy and security think-tank in Romania with a focus on Central and Eastern Europe. She is also an associate researcher with the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) and Europe’s Futures fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna (IWM). Prior, she served as foreign policy adviser to the President of the Romanian Senate, program director of the Aspen Institute Romania, and senior editor of the Romanian edition of Foreign Policy magazine. She is an expert in global political risk and strategic analysis, geopolitics in the EU/NATO neighborhood, transatlantic relations, hybrid threats, as well as shifting models of governance and democratic resilience.
Latvia, Foreign Affairs
Sergejs Potapkins
Sergejs Potapkins is a Latvian politician at the Harmony Party, former Secretary of the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the Latvian Parliament and Country Manager at Upgreat. Previously, Sergejs Potapkins served as a political adviser and was Chairman of the Board of the Baltic Hong Kong Trade Association, as well as member of the Baltic Assembly. Sergejs Potapkins specializes in the Baltic States, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Armenia and China. From 2011-2018 he was Head of the Latvia-China Interparliamentary Cooperation Group.
Western Balkans, Serbia
Jovan Ratkovic
Jovan Ratković joined Agora Strategy as Senior Adviser in 2017. Previously, Jovan Ratković served as Adviser to the President of Serbia (2004–2012) and Adviser to the Minister of Defence of Serbia and Montenegro (2003–2004). He has been actively involved in social democratic party politics at the national, European, and international level for the past two decades.
Western Balkans, Caucasus, Conflict Resolution
Styopa Safaryan
Styopa Safaryan is Founder and Head of the Armenian Institute of International and Security Affairs AIISA. Previously, he served as an MP in the Armenian National Assembly for the Heritage Party and as an expert on legal and political issues at the Armenian Center of Strategic and National Studies. Styopa Safaryan has published more than 50 scientific articles and is a geologist-geophysicist by training.
Serbia, Developing Human Capital, Security Expertise in the Western Balkans, Civil-Military Relations
Dr. Marko Savkovic
Dr. Marko Savkovic is a Senior Advisor within the Team for Population Issues, Strategic Projects Implementation Unit, Government of the Republic of Serbia. Before working as an advisor, he served as Executive Director at the Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (BFPE), the Belgrade Security Forum, and Member of the Program Council of the National Academy of Public Administration. As a previous researcher in the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP), his specialty lies in the fields of Euro-Atlantic integration, security sector reform, ethnic relations, Belgrade-Pristina dispute while writing the first “Dictionary of European Security” in BHS languages. He is an alumni of Bucerius Die Zeit School on Global Governance.
Middle East, North Africa and Türkiye
Transatlantic Relations, Foreign and security policy towards Iran
Dr. Cornelius Adebahr
Dr. Cornelius Adebahr is Senior Fellow and Editor in Chief at the Agora Strategy Institute. Currently based in Rome, Italy, he works as an independent policy consultant and analyst. His expertise focuses on European and global foreign policy issues. Between 2011 and 2016, Dr. Adebahr lived in Tehran and Washington D.C. His publications include Europe and Iran: The Nuclear Deal and Beyond (Routledge 2017) and Inside Iran: Old Nation, New Power? (Dietz 2018).
Middle East, Jordan, Regional Security
Nasser bin Nasser
Nasser bin Nasser is an expert on the geopolitics of the Middle East, focusing on security governance and regional security. Based in Amman, Jordan, Mr. Nasser founded Ambit Advisory, a non-governmental organization working at the nexus of security and development in the Middle East. He is also a Senior Advisor at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research and a columnist for Jordan News. Previously, Mr. Nasser was Managing Director of the Middle East Scientific Institute for Security based in Amman, Jordan, and served as Senior Analyst in the Foreign Affairs Directorate in the office of His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan.
Middle East, Conflict Resolution, European Intelligence Services
Dr. Gerhard Conrad
Dr. Gerhard Conrad, visiting professor at King's College London, is a former senior member of the German Federal Intelligence Service (BND). He served as mediator on behalf of UN Secretary-Generals Kofi Annan and Ban Ki-moon between conflict parties in the Middle East on humanitarian issues (2006-2008). Between 2009 and 2011, he coordinated the negotiations between Israel and Hamas, resulting in the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange. From early 2016 until his retirement in late 2019, Dr. Gerhard Conrad served as Director of the EU Intelligence Analysis and Situation Centre (EU INTCEN) in Brussels.
Egypt, Conflict Prevention in Middle East Region, Diplomacy, Political and Social Stability
Mohamed Elfayoumy
Dr. Mohammed ElFayoumy is a former Egyptian diplomat and Political Advisor for the United Nations Special Envoy to Syria. As a diplomat, he served as Consul in the Egyptian Embassy in Syria between 2011 and 2013, evacuating thousands of Egyptian nationals during the conflict in Syria. Currently, Dr. Mohammed ElFayoumy serves as a senior advisor for governments and leading businesses in the Middle East, with a focus on major transformations and long term strategies.
MENA Region, U.S. Foreign Policy
Jasmine El Gamal
Jasmine El-Gamal is a political analyst in London, UK, focusing on U.S. foreign policy and the Middle East. She was a Senior Fellow with the Middle East program at the Atlantic Council (2015–2020). Previously, Jasmine El-Gamal served as a Middle East adviser at the US Pentagon (2008–2013). During her tenure, she covered issues related to Iraq, Syria, the Arab Spring, and ISIS and served as the Acting Chief of Staff for the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East Policy in the US. She was a Special Assistant to three consecutive US Under Secretaries of Defense for Policy (2013–2015).
Türkiye, EU-Türkiye Relations, Sanctions and Illicit Finance
Dr. Aykan Erdemir
Dr. Aykan Erdemir, based in Turkey, is a Senior Director of the Turkey Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Previously, he was a member of the Turkish Parliament (2011– 2015) for the pro-secular CHP (Republican People's Party). Dr. Aykan Erdemir served on the EU–Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee and the EU Harmonization Committee. He earlier served as the Senior Director of the Turkey Program at Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Washington, D.C. and on the Anti-Defamation League's Task Force on Middle East Minorities.
Jordan, EU Support for Democratization and Development
Dr. Dina Habjouqa
Dr. Dina Habjouqa (Amman, Jordan) is a compliance specialist at Dow Jones, with a focus on corruption, money laundering, and political profiles. She is a former consultant to an EU-funded project addressing political development in the Middle East, which included political consultation services rendered to the European Union Delegation. Formerly, she served as a writer at the European Union Intellectual Property Office, researcher at the Jordanian Royal Court, and EU-Jordan affairs officer at the Jordanian Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation. Dr. Dina Habjouqa holds a PhD in political studies, and until recently, served as an associate professor of political science and international relations at the University of Alicante, Faculty of Law.
Middle East, Qatar, GCC Countries
Dr. Jeremias Kettner
Dr. Jeremias Kettner is a foreign policy expert with significant experience in business and strategy consulting focusing on the Arab countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. He is a proven expert when it comes to relations between Germany and Qatar in all its political, economic and cultural dimensions. Besides various responsibilities, Dr. Kettner is an official Representative for the Member States of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) at the Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade (BWA).
Tunesia, Political Activism, Women's Rights, Democracy Advocate
Omezzine Khelifa
Omezzine Khelifa is a telecommunications engineer, activist, former politician, founder of “Mobdiun – Creative Youth”, a social impact organization that prevents violent extremism and helps to build a peaceful democracy in Tunisia.
Omezzine Khelifa was appointed as Senior Advisor to the Minister of Tourism then Finance of Tunisia, to work on state budget transparency, tax system reforms, and open governance. As a public policy expert, she collaborated with the EU, World Bank Group, and the UN, and assisted the Tunisian government with public sector reforms including the financial sector and governance.
Middle East, Regional Security, Conflict Mediation
Dr. Nahla Yassine-Hamdan
Dr. Nahla Yassine-Hamdan is an Arab-American mediation and international relations expert and an author on contemporary political conflicts in the Middle East. Currently, she is an Assistant Professor at the American University in the United Arab Emirates affiliated with the College of Security and Global Studies. Dr. Yassine-Hamdan has served as a Regional Conflict Thematic Analysis Specialist with the United Nations Development Programme. As a certified mediator, she has also served on numerous advisory boards and AdvancED accreditation teams in the Gulf region.
Russia and Central Asia
China, Russia, Central Asia, China-Russia Relations
Alexander Gabuev
Alexander Gabuev is a Senior Fellow and the chair of Russia in the Asia-Pacific Program at the Carnegie Moscow Center. His research focuses on Russia’s policy toward East and Southeast Asia, political and ideological trends in China, and China’s relations with its neighbors. Prior to joining Carnegie, Alexander Gabuev served as deputy editor in chief of one of Russia's most influential newsweeklies, Kommersant-Vlast.
Moldova, European Integration
Iulian Groza
Iulian Groza is an expert on foreign policy, European affairs, and good governance. He is a former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova and was responsible for European integration (2013-2015). Previously, he held various positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, including Director General of the Directorate for European Integration. Iulian Groza has worked at the Moldovan Mission to the EU in Brussels and is currently the Executive Director of the Institute for European Policy and Reform (IPRE). Since 2022, Mr. Groza was appointed as civil society representative within the Supreme Security Council and National Committee for European Integration led by the President of the Republic of Moldova.
Caucasus, Silk Road Region
Damjan Krnjević Mišković
Damjan Krnjević Mišković served as a senior political strategist, diplomatic adviser, and crisis counselor at both international and national levels. Currently, he is Professor of Practice and Director of Publications and Policy Research at ADA University in Baku, Aserbaidschan. He also served as Senior Special Adviser and Chief Speechwriter to the President of the UN General Assembly (2012–2013), Senior Adviser to the Foreign Minister (2007–2012) and President (2007–2012) of Serbia.
Poland, Russia, Disarmament and Arms Control
Rolf Nikel
Rolf Nikel is a German senior diplomat (ret.), who served as Ambassador to Poland until 2020. Previously, he served as Commissioner for Disarmament and Arms Control and as Head of the UN and Global Issues Group. In the Federal Chancellery, he worked for former Chancellors Kohl (1989–1994), Schröder (1998–2001), and Merkel (2005–2021). He also served at the German embassies in Moscow, Nairobi, Paris, and Washington, D.C.
Ukraine, Europe, Russia/CIS, Trade, Development, Good Governance, Macroeconomic development
Denys Pashchenko
Denys Pashchenko is a Senior National Expert for the EU Project “Support to Justice Sector Reforms and Digitalization in Ukraine”. In addition to the strategic coordination of the justice sector reform, Denys Pashchenko is responsible for the promotion and oversight of the Office of the Prosecutor General’s (OPG) reforms. Also, since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he joined the Armed Forces as a senior artillery battery officer. Since June 2022, he is a member of the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group (ACA), created by the EU, as well as UK and US governments. The overarching mission of the ACA is to support the OPG in its investigation and prosecution of Russian war crimes. He previously worked as a Staff-Member (Senior Consultant) of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defence and was Deputy Head of the Economic Security Department at the Ministry of Economy in Ukraine.
Western Balkans, Caucasus, Conflict Resolution
Styopa Safaryan
Styopa Safaryan is Founder and Head of the Armenian Institute of International and Security Affairs AIISA. Previously, he served as an MP in the Armenian National Assembly for the Heritage Party and as an expert on legal and political issues at the Armenian Center of Strategic and National Studies. Styopa Safaryan has published more than 50 scientific articles and is a geologist-geophysicist by training.
Ukraine / Georgia, Law, Security
Eka Tkeshelashvili
Eka Tkeshelashvili is a Georgian jurist and politician, formerly serving as Minister of State for Reintegration of Georgia (2010-2012), Deputy Prime Minister (2010-20129), Minister of Foreign Affairs (2008), Minister of Justice (2007-2008), as well as National Security Advisor to the President of Georgia and Secretary of the National Security Council (2008-2010). From 2014 to 2021, she served as Head of the European Anti-Corruption Initiative program for Ukraine and as President of the Georgian Institute for Strategic Studies. Since 2021, she is serving in the capacity of the Head of USAID project Support to Champion Anti-Corruption Institutions (SACCI) in Ukraine.
China-Russia Relation, Central Asian Domestic and Foreign Policy
Temur Umarov
Temur Umarov, based in Uzbekistan, is a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His research is focused on Central Asian countries' domestic and foreign policies, as well as China's relations with Russia and Central Asian neighbors. A native of Uzbekistan, Temur Umarov holds degrees in China studies and international relations from the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, and Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO). He holds an MA in world economics from the University of International Business and Economics (Beijing). He is also an alumnus of the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center’s Young Ambassadors and the Carnegie Endowment’s Central Asian Futures programs.
Central Asia
Prof Dr. László Vasa
Prof. László Vasa is a senior research fellow and chief advisor at the Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Hungary's leading think tank in foreign policy. He is the vice-rector for academics and full professor of the Budapest Metropolitan University, and a research professor of the Széchenyi István University. His fields of research are Central Asia, Eurasian connectivity, and resource economics. He is a demanded visiting professor at Central Asian and Japanese universities and has a high-level scientific publication, reviewer, and editorial activity in high-ranked Scopus and Wos listed journals. Dr. Vasa often writes articles on Central Asia for the Hungarian and international press.
China
China, US-China Relations, Belt and Road Initiative
Dr. Matt Ferchen
Dr. Matt Ferchen is an expert on China’s domestic and international political economy. He focuses on varieties of Chinese economic statecraft and economic influence, especially in Southeast Asia and Latin America. Currently, Dr. Matt Ferchen is a lecturer at Leiden University Institute of Area Studies. Previously, he was Head of Global China Research at the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Berlin (2020-2021), a scholar with the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy (2011-2019), and an associate professor in the Department of International Relations at Tsinghua University (2008-2017), both in Beijing.
China, Russia,Central Asia, China-Russia Relations
Alexander Gabuev
Alexander Gabuev is a Senior Fellow and the chair of Russia in the Asia-Pacific Program at the Carnegie Moscow Center. His research focuses on Russia’s policy toward East and Southeast Asia, political and ideological trends in China, and China’s relations with its neighbors. Prior to joining Carnegie, Alexander Gabuev served as deputy editor in chief of one of Russia's most influential newsweeklies, Kommersant-Vlast.
China, Brazil, International Development, Sustainable Energy
Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl
Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl is a former Austrian senior diplomat. Her international postings as Ambassador included China and Mongolia (2012-2017) as well as Brazil and Surinam (2017-2021). Her main areas of expertise are economic and social development, energy and the environment as well as women's rights. Through her role as Austria’s Director General for Development Cooperation, Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl has developed a strong international network. Dr. Irene Giner-Reichl has taught at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna for many years and is an honorary professor at the University of International Business Administration in Beijing.
China, United States, Transportation Industry
Sietse Goffard
Sietse Goffard is Policy Advisor and Project Lead at Boston Housing Authority. Previously, he was a research fellow at Harvard University’s Department of Economics. He studied US–China relations and aviation policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and at Tsinghua University in Beijing, where he was a Schwarzman Scholar. His research has been published by the Brookings Institution, Carter Center, Cato Institute, and National Bureau of Economic Research. At Agora Strategy, Sietse Goffard focuses on topics related to China, aviation and to transportation.
Foreign Policy, EU-China Relationship
Shi Ming
Shi Ming is an independent journalist, analyst and consultant. Born in Beijing in 1957, he came to Germany on behalf of a Chinese trading company. In addition to articles published by ARD, ZDF, Deutschlandfunk and other print media such as the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the Süddeutsche Zeitung, Le Monde diplomatique, Neue Züricher Zeitung and Cicero since 1990, he has been reporting since 2006 on German and European institutions such as the Office of the Federal President, Foreign Office, Federal Environment Ministry, Federal Ministry of Economics, European Parliament, various political foundations such as Konrad Adenauer, Friedrich Naumann and Heinrich-Böll Foundation, as well as clients from business, international relations and regional administration in Germany.
China, South Korea, Afghanistan
Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Hans-Ulrich Seidt
Dr. Hans-Ulrich Seidt is a German diplomat who has served as Inspector General of the German Foreign Office (2014-2017). He was Director General for Culture and Communication of the German Foreign Office (2012-2014). Dr. Hans-Ulrich Seidt served as Germany's Ambassador to Korea (2009-2012) and Afghanistan (2006-2008). Dr. Hans-Ulrich Seidt's other diplomatic postings included Moscow, Nairobi, Brussels (NATO), and Washington, D.C. Since 2017 He is a Fellow of the Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination at Princeton University.
China-Russia Relation, Central asian Domestic and Foreign Policy
Temur Umarov
Temur Umarov, based in Uzbekistan, is a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His research is focused on Central Asian countries' domestic and foreign policies, as well as China's relations with Russia and Central Asian neighbors. A native of Uzbekistan, Temur Umarov holds degrees in China studies and international relations from the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, and Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO). He holds an MA in world economics from the University of International Business and Economics (Beijing). He is also an alumnus of the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center’s Young Ambassadors and the Carnegie Endowment’s Central Asian Futures programs.
Asia-Pacific
Southeast Asia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Trade Policy
Nikolaus Graf Lambsdorff
Nikolaus Graf Lambsdorff is a German senior diplomat (ret.) who served as Ambassador to Malaysia (until July 2020) and to Moldova (2007–2010), and as Consul General in Hong Kong and Macao (2013–2014). He was also Ambassador and Special Envoy for the Western Balkans, Turkey, and the EFTA States. Nikolaus Graf Lambsdorff was posted to the Office of the High Representative in Brcko, Bosnia, and served as Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary General (Head of the EU Pillar) of UNMIK in Kosovo. Other postings included Jakarta, Washington, D.C., and Tallinn.
Japan, China, South Korea
Dr. Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp
Dr. Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp is Visiting Fellow for Japan at the Asia Programme of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) and a Policy Fellow for European and Foreign Policy at the independent think tank Das Progressive Zentrum. She was a project consultant of the Federal State Chancellery of Hesse, researcher at the German Institute for Japanese Studies in Tokyo, and worked for the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP), a leading German foreign policy think tank, for several years. Her research fields encompass foreign policy analysis in the Asia Pacific, Indo-Pacific Strategic Issues, EU–Japan relations.
China, Hong Kong, Japan, Digital Policy
Armin Reinartz
Armin Reinartz headed the Office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, a German foundation for liberal policy, in Hong Kong until 2020. His work focuses on the political implications of tech trends, as well as China’s development and impact on the world. Before 2017, Mr. Reinartz coordinated the Foundation’s analytical work on Southeast and East Asia. Prior to this, he worked for the Peking University News and the Foreign Correspondents Club of China in Beijing, amongst others.
India, Multilateralism, Water Security
Ambika Vishwanath
Ambika Vishwanath is Director of the Kubernein Initiative, a boutique consultancy that focuses on emerging multilateralism in Asia and the intersection of transboundary water security, climate, and foreign policy in different economies. Previously, Ambika Vishwanath worked as Senior Programme Manager at the Strategic Foresight Group.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa, Energy, Public International Finance
Dr. Albrecht Conze
Dr. Albrecht Conze looks back on a distinguished diplomatic career. He has served as German Ambassador to Benin, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, and Uganda, and held senior positions in both UN peacekeeping and EU security affairs. Dr. Albrecht Conze has acquired a deep institutional and cultural knowledge of various African markets and developed a network which covers most of anglophone and francophone Africa. He has also worked closely with major international development banks and agencies and has advised and assisted many German companies in their investment and trading activities.
Human Rights, International Criminal Justice
Ottilia Anna Maunganidze
Ottilia Anna Maunganidze is the Head of Special Projects in the Office of the Executive Director at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in Pretoria, South Africa. Before joining the ISS in 2009, Maunganidze was a junior legal advisor and human rights education officer. Her expertise lies in the fields of human security, international law, and human rights. A strategist, legal expert and analyst, her work includes understanding emerging threats in Africa, international criminal justice, international human rights law, and migration trends and policy.