A. Wess Mitchell Keynote Speaker

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, 2017-2019
Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Author of Unquiet Frontier and Grand Strategy of the Habsburg Empire

A. Wess Mitchell's Biography

Dr. A. Wess Mitchell is a keynote speaker and an American foreign policy expert who formerly served as Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. He was responsible for diplomatic relations with the 50 countries of Europe and Eurasia, alongside the institutions of NATO, the EU and OSCE. He is also the co-founder of the Center for European Policy Analysis; a policy institute that is dedicated to the study of Central and Eastern Europe.

Dr. Mitchell holds a doctorate in Political Science from the Otto Suhr Institut für Politikwissenschaft at Freie Universität in Berlin, a Master’s degree from the Center for German and European Studies at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, and a bachelor’s degree in History from Texas Tech University. During his time at the Center for German and European Studies, he was awarded the 2004 Hopper Award.

During the 2012 Presidential Campaign, Dr. Mitchell served on the national security team of Gov. Mitt Romney. Currently, he serves as the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors at CEPA, a Senior Advisor at the U.S. Institute of Peace, and is a Non-Resident Fellow in the Applied History Project Harvard University Kennedy School of Government’s Belfer Center. In 2013 until 2016, Dr. Mitchell chaired the Europe Working Group of the John Hay Initiative and he has been awarded the Gold Medal of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic, the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit of Hungary, and the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland.

He is also the author of four books, including Great Power Diplomacy: The Skill of Statecraft from Attila the Hun to Kissinger (2025), The Godfather Doctrine: A Foreign Policy Parable (2009), Unquiet Frontier: Rising Rivals, Vulnerable Allies (2016), and The Grand Strategy of the Habsburg Empire (2018).

The Future of European Security and Transatlantic Relations

NATO, Russia and the Changing Geopolitical Landscape

Great Power Competition and the New World Order

U.S. Foreign Policy and Global Strategy

Geopolitical Risk: What Business Leaders Need to Know

He has operated at the highest level of US foreign policy as Assistant Secretary of State, managing diplomatic relations with Europe and Eurasia and working directly with NATO, the EU and allied governments.
He brings rare strategic insight from government, think tanks and academia, helping leaders understand great power competition, alliance politics and the realities of American power.
He translates historical and geopolitical analysis into practical frameworks that enable policymakers, executives and institutions to assess risk and long-term strategy.
He challenges audiences with clear-eyed, historically grounded thinking on security and statecraft, equipping leaders to make decisions in an era of renewed geopolitical rivalry.