Kenneth M. Pollack

Kenneth M. Pollack is an Adjunct Professor in the Security Studies Program at Georgetown University and Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). His expertise focuses on Middle Eastern political-military affairs, with specialization in Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Gulf state dynamics. He holds a Ph.D. from MIT and a B.A. from Yale University.

Prior to academia, Dr. Pollack served as a Persian Gulf Military Analyst at the CIA, held dual roles on the National Security Council staff, and worked as a Senior Research Professor at the National Defense University. At Brookings Institution, he directed the Saban Center for Middle East Policy for 15 years.

His research emphasizes strategic military effectiveness in Arab nations, US-Middle East relations, and geopolitical conflict analysis. Notable works include Armies of Sand (2019), The Persian Puzzle (2007), and The Threatening Storm (2002).