Celeste A. Wallander

American government official (born 1961)

Celeste A. Wallander


Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office February 22, 2022
President	Joe Biden
Preceded by	Robert Karem

Personal details
Born	1961 (age 62–63)
Political party	Democratic
Education	Northwestern University (BA) Yale University (MA, PhD)
Celeste A. Wallander's voice Wallander's opening statement at a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the security environment in Europe Recorded March 30, 2022

Celeste Ann Wallander (born 1961) is an American international relations advisor who currently serves as assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs at the United States Department of Defense.^[1]^[2]

Education

Wallander received her BA summa cum laude in political science from Northwestern University in 1983. She received her MA (1985), MPhil (1986) and PhD (1990) degrees in political science from Yale University.^[3]

Career

Wallander was previously a professor of government at Harvard University (1989–2000), senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (2000–2001), director and senior fellow of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (2001–2006), and visiting professor at Georgetown University (2006–2008). Wallander founded the Program on New Approaches to Russian Security and the Eurasian Strategy Project.

Wallander was special assistant to the president and senior director for Russia and Eurasia on the National Security Council from 2013 to 2017. Earlier in the Obama administration she had served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy from May 2009 to July 2012.^[4] Wallander was an adviser to Barack Obama during the 2008 Democratic primary campaign.^[5]

Biden administration

On June 22, 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Wallander to be assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.^[6] Hearings were held before the Senate Armed Services Committee on January 13, 2022. The committee favorably reported her nomination to the Senate floor on February 1, 2022. Wallander was confirmed by the entire Senate by a vote of 83–13 on February 16, 2022.^[7]

Publications

(co-editor) Swords and Sustenance: The Economics of Security in Belarus and Ukraine. MA: MIT Press, 2004. ISBN 9780262278126
(co-editor) The Sources of Russian Foreign Policy after the Cold War. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1996. ISBN 9780367295905
Mortal Friends, Best Enemies: German-Russian Cooperation after the Cold War. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1999. ISBN 9780801486081
(co-editor) Imperfect Unions: Security Institutions over Time and Space. Oxford; New York: Clarendon Press, 1999. ISBN 9780198207955

References

^ Nichols, Hans (22 June 2021). "Biden taps Russia expert for key Pentagon job".
^ "(tweet @SenateFloor)".
^ "Dr. Celeste Wallander".
^ Rogin, Josh (15 August 2012). "Pentagon names new Russia policy chief".
^ Mary, William &. "[PAST EVENT] Reves Center Hosts Celeste Wallander, Special Assistant to the President for Russia & Central Asia". events.wm.edu. Retrieved 2022-09-17.
^ "President Biden Announces Three Key Nominations". The White House. 22 June 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
^ "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Celeste Ann Wallander, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary of Defense)". US Senate. Retrieved 2 April 2022.

Sources

Rocket Science 101
Biography from the United States Department of Defense
Interview with Radio Free Europe
NATO's Price: Shape Up or Ship Out (2002) - article in Foreign Affairs magazine