Matthew Zais is the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of International Affairs at the Energy Department.  Previously, Dr. Zais served for two years in the White House as a Director on the National Security Council where, among other responsibilities, he coordinated US inter-agency efforts to deliver energy independence and advocate for competitive energy markets across the Middle East.  Prior to this role, he served for over two decades as a career Army officer and strategist and his experience includes strategic roles in combating weapons of mass destruction (nuclear, chemical and biological), cyber, and Middle East policy.  He is the co-author of the two-volume official history of the United States Army in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He previously served as an Assistant Professor of International Relations and American Foreign Policy at the United States Military Academy and is currently an adjunct Professor in the Security Studies Program at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Dr. Zais holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the United States Military Academy at West Point and an MPA and PhD (Security Studies) from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.