Zelma Sergejeva is a visiting fellow at the Transatlantic Security Initiative in the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security. She joins the Atlantic Council through the Baltic-American Freedom Foundation whose mission is to deepen the ties between the Baltic States and the United States. In her role, she supports the Initiative’s programming and research covering transatlantic policy, NATO defense policy, and European security.

She previously served as a senior expert at the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Latvia with expertise in NATO defense policy; arms control and confidence- and security-building measures; chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense policy; the European Union’s (EU) Common Security and Defence Policy; and the implementation of EU’s Strategic Compass. She has closely worked with national commitments to international organizations such as the United Nations (UN) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). She also had internships at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Latvia.

Sergejeva received the OSCE and UN Office for Disarmament Affairs Scholarship for Peace and Security providing knowledge about conflict prevention and resolution through arms control, disarmament, and nonproliferation, with a focus on gender equality as an element in comprehensive security. She holds a master’s degree in political science from the University of Latvia, where her research was focused on addressing theoretical and practical issues of arms control. Sergejeva has also studied at European Security and Defense College, the NATO School Oberammergau, and NATO Defense College, enhancing her knowledge in various subjects in the field of security and defense. She also has extensive experience working and volunteering in nongovernmental organizations, highlighting Global Shapers Riga Hub as the latest.