Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Ian Brzezinski Joins Atlantic Council as New International Security Program Senior Fellow

The Atlantic Council is pleased to announce the appointment of Ian Brzezinski, a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Europe and NATO Policy, as a Senior Fellow in the International Security Program.  Ian Brzezinski has served as a member of the Council’s Strategic Advisors Group, a body of U.S. and European security experts established to make policy recommendations regarding NATO and other transatlantic defense issues.

 "Through Ian Brzezinski we hope to expand the Council’s activities and programs concerning the many tough existing and emerging defense challenges before the United States, its allies and its partners," said Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe.  "We look forward to leveraging his tremendous background, including his services as a senior staffer on Capitol Hill and as a senior official in the Department of Defense, and more recently his time in defense industry."

Brzezinski has spent nearly two decades addressing transatlantic security issues through his roles in the U.S. government, the legislative branch, research institutions and defense industry.  As Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense in the George W. Bush Administration, he played leading roles in expanding NATO to Central Europe, modernizing and consolidating NATO’s command structure, creating the NATO Response Force, and shaping the Alliance’s role in Afghanistan and other international operations.  He served as a Senior Professional Staff Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee responsible for Europe and Eurasia and prior to that as a member of then-Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee Bill Roth’s personal staff.

Founded in 1961, the Atlantic Council aims to renew the Atlantic community for 21st-century global challenges through constructive U.S.-European leadership and engagement in world affairs.  Led by Senator Chuck Hagel, Chairman, and Frederick Kempe, president and CEO, the Council embodies a network of policy, academic and business leaders who foster transatlantic ties through non-partisan and cross-national discussions and studies.