Research Leader, Defence, Security, and Justice, RAND Europe
He/Him
Jacob Parakilas is research leader for Defence Strategy, Policy and Capabilities at RAND Europe. Previously, Parakilas worked on the U.S.-UK defense relationship as part of the State Department's Political-Military team at Embassy London. Parakilas also lived in Lagos, Nigeria, where he consulted and wrote a column on defense technology and the future of warfare. Prior to that, he was the deputy head of the U.S. program at Chatham House, working on issues relating to the U.S. role in the world and foreign perceptions of America. In that role, he led the development of the operational concept for the Chatham House Simulation Centre and coordinated seven policy wargames. He has also worked as Head of Weapons at Action on Armed Violence, an NGO working on armed violence reduction worldwide, and at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, certifying American educational institutions to support the issuance of student visas.
His professional interests are in American foreign policy, the war in Ukraine, the evolution of technology and warfare, and the trade in drugs and arms; he has written and commented in a variety of publications, taught classes on the ethics of war and peace and strategic aspects of international relations, carried out policy research and written white papers and spoken to academic, professional, military, and general-interest audiences.
He completed a Ph.D. in international relations at the London School of Economics and a Master's in Middle East and Central Asian security issues at the University of St. Andrews.
Ph.D. in international relations, London School of Economics and Political Science; M.Litt. in Middle East and Central Asian Security Studies, University of St Andrews; B.A. in international relations, Hampshire College
