About
Liselotte Odgaard is a nonresident senior fellow at Hudson Institute and a research fellow at the Norwegian Institute for Defense Studies in Oslo. Her expertise focuses on US-China-Europe relations with particular emphasis on NATO-China dynamics, Chinese foreign and security policy, Indo-Pacific security architecture, and Arctic geopolitics. She frequently contributes to policy discussions on great power competition and strategic alignment in international security contexts.
Dr. Odgaard earned her bachelor's, master's, and PhD in political science from Aarhus University in Denmark, complemented by a master's degree in international studies from the University of Warwick in the UK. Her academic foundation has informed her rigorous analysis of international security dynamics.
Her research examines how China navigates international security architecture while avoiding formal military alliances, preferring flexible strategic partnerships that serve Chinese interests without creating binding security commitments. She has developed a significant body of work analyzing China's growing presence in the Arctic, its approach to NATO, and European security dynamics in an era of strategic competition with the United States. Her scholarship consistently explores the intersection of sovereignty concepts, strategic interests, and institutional engagement.
Dr. Odgaard's publications demonstrate a clear trend toward analyzing how traditional Western security institutions like NATO are adapting to Chinese strategic behavior across multiple regions, particularly the Arctic and Indo-Pacific. Her work reveals how China's strategic thinking about alliances and partnerships differs fundamentally from Western approaches, with implications for global security architecture.
She regularly participates in high-level policy dialogues including the Arctic Circle Assembly in Iceland and the Xiangshan Forum in Beijing. Dr. Odgaard has moderated significant panels on NATO-Asia-Pacific cooperation and maritime security, demonstrating her role as a bridge between academic analysis and policy implementation.
As a frequent media commentator, she provides expert analysis on Chinese foreign and security policy, particularly regarding China's strategic interests in regions beyond its traditional sphere of influence. Her scholarly contributions continue to shape understanding of evolving great power dynamics in the 21st century.
