Christina Alfonso

Council on Global Competition and Innovation

Christina Alfonso is a senior advisor to leaders of multiple government and private sector entities, leveraging her distinguished background in financial innovation and entrepreneurship to address issues at the intersection of national security, economic competitiveness, and emerging technologies. As President of the Council on Global Competition and Innovation (CGCI), she leads an initiative championed by the US Dept of Defense and a coalition of private sector executives. CGCI promotes market-led national security investments, focusing on resilient, security-oriented growth and counter-adversary capital flows. At DARPA, Christina advises on economic competition, AI integration, and technological innovation in support of U.S. national security interests. She is also responsible for developing and recommending strategies to enhance public-private partnerships and strengthen the domestic innovation ecosystem. Previously, as co-founder/CFO of Novata, a Microsoft and S&P-backed technology platform, Christina enhanced private market transparency through non-financial data reporting. As co-founder/CEO of Madeira Global (2012-2020), she pioneered values-based investment solutions for the private equity and credit sectors. She is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School Senior Executives in National and International Security program. Christina holds an M.B.A. from ESADE Business School (Spain) and a B.S. in Finance and Economics from Fordham University. Christina is a board director of the RWJBH Monmouth Medical Center Foundation and has served on the advisory boards of the Milken Institute Young Leaders Circle, PathNorth, and the Women's Society for the Economy and Society. She has extensive international experience, most recently in São Paulo, and is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese.

Orley Ashenfelter

CERGE-EI & Princeton University

Orley Ashenfelter’s areas of specialization include labor economics, econometrics, and law and economics. His current research includes the cross-country measurement of wage rates, and many other issues related to the economics of labor markets.

Prof. Ashenfelter has been the director of the Industrial Relations Section at Princeton University, director of the Office of Evaluation of the U.S. Department of Labor, a Guggenheim Fellow, and the Benjamin Meeker Visiting Professor at the University of Bristol. He is a recipient of the IZA Prize in Labor Economics, the Mincer Award for Lifetime Achievement of the Society of Labor Economists, and the Karel Englis Medal awarded by the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic.

He is a Fellow of the Econometric Society, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Society of Labor Economics, and an International Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He is also a member of the American Philosophical Society and the National Academy of Sciences. He edited the Handbook of Labor Economics, was editor of the American Economic Review, and the co-editor of the American Law and Economics Review. He is a past president of the American Economic Association, the American Law and Economic Association, and the Society of Labor Economists.

Vladimír Bilčík

Aston Centre for Europe

Vladimír Bilčík is currently a Senior Fellow with GLOBSEC think-tank and Visiting Professorial Fellow at Aston Centre for Europe, Aston University in the UK. He served as Member of the European Parliament from 2019 to 2024 where he dealt with rule of law issues, information security and EU enlargement, especially in the Western Balkans as the Chair of EP Delegation for Relations with Montenegro and EP Standing Rapporteur for Serbia. Prior to 2019 he was the Head of European research programme in the Slovak Foreign Policy Association and Lecturer in the Department of Political Science at Comenius University. He received his PhD in political theory from Comenius University, M.Phil. in European politics from the University of Oxford and B.A. in political science and economics from Swarthmore College.

Sebastian Burduja

Former Romanian Minister of Energy, and Minister of Research, Innovation and Digitalization

Sebastian-Ioan Burduja is currently an Honorary Adviser to the Prime Minister of Romania and a Member of Parliament. He previously served as the Minister of Energy from June 2023 to July 2025 and as the Minister of Research, Innovation and Digitalization between May 2022 and June 2023. Since December 2020 he has been elected to the Romanian Parliament and is also the President of the Bucharest branch of the National Liberal Party.

Before starting his political career, he acted as the Founding President of the League of Romanian Students Abroad (LSRS), now the largest Romanian non-profit network in the world, and the co-founder of the CAESAR Foundation, a think tank connecting 500 top Romanian and international policy experts.

Previously, he served as a Regional Development Specialist for the World Bank in Washington, D.C., focusing on Europe and Central Asia. Mr. Burduja has also worked for Dalberg Global Development Advisors, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, McKinsey & Co., and the National Endowment for Democracy.

He graduated from Stanford University as a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society with a major in Politics and sub-specializations in Economy and Sociology. From 2008 to 2011, he continued his studies at Harvard University, being a David Rubenstein Fellow and graduating two master’s programs: MBA from Harvard Business School and MPP from Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He was honored in 2009 and 2010 with outstanding academic achievement, including the “First Year Honors” and “Second Year Honors” awards given to the best students at Harvard Business School. Mr. Burduja holds a PhD in Economics and International Affairs from the Romanian Academy of Economic Studies, with the “Summa Cum Laude” qualification.

Odd-Even Bustnes

Head of Europe, The Nuclear Company

Odd-Even Bustnes brings 25 years of business building experience into leading The Nuclear Company’s European expansion. Prior to TNC, he was VP of Business Development Europe at Redwood Materials, where he directed commercial strategy, key acquisitions, and was integral to establishing Redwood as an operator of industrial facilities in Europe and the UK. He led European sourcing and sales, oversaw key material supply and offtake agreements, and negotiated and secured product supply contracts of over $0.5 billion in individual value.

Previously, he served as VP of Corporate Development Norsk Hydro ASA, a globally integrated aluminum producer. Before Hydro, he built up and led Tesla’s European Business Development team, overseeing that team’s many successes in commercial, policy, and strategic areas across Europe. He started his business career in the U.S. at consultancy McKinsey & Company.

Tony Claudino

CEO, CERGE-EI Foundation

Tony Claudino is President and CEO of the CERGE-EI Foundation, bringing more than 20 years of experience in developing outreach, marketing, scholarship program recruitment strategies, and public-private partnerships. Prior to joining the foundation, he led outreach, recruitment, and marketing efforts for the Fulbright Program at the Institute of International Education (IIE). He piloted and developed recruitment models that engaged diverse groups of prospective applicants, including successful publicity campaigns such as the Top Producing Institutions initiative with the Chronicle of Higher Education. He has extensive experience in working on U.S. government programs and establishing public-private partnerships. He has led various fundraising initiatives to enhance the Fulbright Program, from the Alumni Ambassador program with IIE’s Board of Trustees to Afghan Student enhancement workshops supported by individual donors. At IIE, he also led the Ron Brown Fellowship Program which provided scholarships to young professionals from Eastern and Central Europe and the Balkans to complete professional degrees in the U.S. Tony has worked in Brno (Czech Republic) as founder and director of the TESOL Teacher Education Program at Masaryk University. He was also a lecturer in the University’s English Department and worked at Masaryk University's International Office. He was a board member of the Vanderbilt YMCA, founding board member of Race2Rebuild, and a co-founder of the Brooklyn Triathlon Club. Tony holds a B.A. from Middlebury College, an M.A. from the Universidade Aberta, Lisbon, and an M.P.A. in Public and Nonprofit Management and Policy from NYU.

Kenneth Cukier

Deputy Executive Editor of The Economist

Kenneth Cukier is deputy executive editor of The Economist, following two decades at the paper as a foreign correspondent, technology writer, data editor and commentary editor. He is the coauthor of the NYT bestselling book “Big Data”, which was translated into over 20 languages, and “Framers” on AI and mental models.

Previously Kenn was the technology editor of the Wall Street Journal Asia in Hong Kong and worked at the International Herald Tribune in Paris. He has been a research fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and Oxford’s Saïd Business School. Kenn previously served on the boards of directors of Chatham House and International Bridges to Justice. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Burkhard Dallosch

Chair, CERGE-EI Foundation

Burkhard Dallosch is a seasoned finance executive with over three decades of experience in banking and real estate fund management. In 2024, he founded expadBridge Advisors, a Frankfurt-based advisory platform focused on business development, risk management, process optimization, and strategic transformation. Prior Mr. Dallosch served 16 years as Managing Director for the Real Estate Division of DekaBank Group. Earlier in his career, Mr. Dallosch held several key positions, including CEO of the Wohnungsbauförderungsanstalt (Wfa) at the State Development Bank of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW Bank), and CRO/CFO as member of the Board of Managing Directors at Hypothekenbank in Essen AG. He began his career at Commerzbank, where he advanced through various leadership roles, culminating in his appointment as General Manager of the Prague branch (2002–2006), overseeing operations in the Czech and Slovak markets. Mr. Dallosch holds a master’s degree in business administration from Georg August University in Göttingen.

Beyond his corporate responsibilities, he has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the CERGE-EI Foundation since 2018. He is also a Board Member of the Institute for Corporate Governance for the German Real Estate Industry (ICG).

Dr. Matthias Danne

DekaBank

Matthias Danne is a German financial manager who was and still is a member of various Management and Supervisory Boards. Since 2020, he has been the Deputy CEO of DekaBank and Chairman of the Supervisory Boards of several group companies. Before joining the Management Board of DekaBank, he held various Board Management positions since 1997, at EUROHYPO AG, Allgemeine Hypothekenbank AG, BHW Holding AG and RHEINHYP AG. In two of these companies, he also served as CEO. Since 2020 his responsibilities on the Management Board of Deka Group are Asset Management and Treasury, previously he acted as CFO, Chief Credit Officer on board level and Board Member for IT. During his many years on the Management Board, he often managed critical and complex issues such as integrations, mergers, restructurings, company sales or market repositionings. Before taking responsibility in Management Boards, Matthias Danne gained experience primarily in Real Estate Lending, Financial Controlling and Sales of Financial Services and as Consultant for Financial Institutions at McKinsey & Company. He holds a degree in Economics (Diplom-Ökonom) from the University of Hannover and a Doctorate in Economics (Dr. rer. pol.) from the J.W. Goethe University in Frankfurt.

Toby Doman

PPF Group

Toby Doman currently serves as Head of External Communications at a European investment business, PPF Group, based in Prague. He has 20 years of experience advising a range of global organisations on corporate affairs, reputation, public diplomacy and media relations issues Before returning to Europe in 2024, he spent a decade in Hong Kong and Singapore, working in a variety of roles. These included, Group Head of Communications for global consumer finance operator Home Credit and heading Asia-Pacific communications for Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal. Toby also has experience in the broadcast sector having worked as a presenter on UK commercial radio, BBC local radio and on talk radio in Singapore. He is a graduate of Cardiff University.

Crispin Ellison

Marsh McLennan

Crispin is a senior partner at Oliver Wyman and for the past 2 1⁄2 years he has led all the work in and for Ukraine across the Marsh McLennan group of companies. He spends one week in four in Ukraine working closely with ministers and senior officials in Kyiv and has just completed his thirtieth visit. He also works with US, UK and EU governments and international financial institutions on Ukraine challenges.

Marsh McLennan’s work in Ukraine falls into three categories:

• Providing insurance products to customers tailored to the requirements of a country at war. This includes war risk insurance for shipping, aviation, energy assets and other critical national infrastructure. And creating a war risk data platform that allows investors and insurers access to detailed war risk data.
• Supporting some of Ukraine’s most critical projects. These include sourcing large scale emergency generation, re-opening western Ukraine airspace to commercial traffic, and recently supporting the Ukraine government in its high-profile plans to exploit its natural resources.
• Working with the government of Ukraine on its long-term strategic plans for post-war recovery and national transformation.

Peter Frankopan

University of Oxford

Peter Frankopan is Professor of Global History at Oxford University and UNESCO Professor of Silk Roads Studies at King’s College, Cambridge. His books include The Silk Roads: A New History of the World (2015), a major global bestseller which was described ‘not just the most important history book in years, but the most important in decades’. It was named one of the Sunday Times Books of the Decade (2010-19). The New Silk Roads: The Present and Future of the World (2018) was awarded the Carical Prize for Social Sciences in 2019. Peter’s most recent book is The Earth Transformed: An Untold History (2023) was a Financial Times, Sunday Times, Le Point, Guardian Book of the Year, and The Times History Book of the Year. According to the FT, ‘Humanity has transformed the Earth: Frankopan transforms our understanding of history.’ Peter is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Geographic Society, the Royal Society of Literature, the Royal Asiatic Society and the Royal Anthropological Institute, He is President of the Royal Society for Asian Affairs. He advises governments, multi-lateral institutions and corporations around the world about global affairs. Often described as a ‘rockstar’ academic (BBC News, New Statesman, The Times, Der Spiegel), Peter has been called ‘the first great historian of the 21st century’ (DCM magazine).

Greg Hands

Former UK Government Minister

Greg was the UK Member of Parliament for Chelsea & Fulham for 19 years, winning five elections (but not that in July 2024!). A Government Minister for 11 years, he uniquely in the governments of all 5 Conservative Prime Ministers, 2010-2024, serving as Budget Minister, four times as Trade Minister, Energy Minister, Conservative Party Chairman, and Deputy Chief Whip. He oversaw more than 70 successful Free Trade Agreement negotiations; the longest term-ever government Spending Review and Launched the UK’s Net Zero Strategy, 2021. Now, he works for the EP (Energeticky a Prumyslovy) Group, a leading Czech conglomerate, in London, Prague and in Germany, as Strategic Adviser to owner Daniel Kretinsky. A joint UK/US citizen, Greg was born in New York, and his first job in politics was working for President George H W Bush. Greg is a regular speaker at the Aspen Institute’s Program on the Global Economy, and also concluded UK trade MoUs with a number of US states. Unusually in British politics, he speaks foreign languages and lived in West Berlin, 1985-88. He had a previous career in bank capital markets in London and New York City.

Eric Hontz

CIPE

Eric Hontz leads the Center for International Private Enterprise’s Center for Accountable Investment (CAI) which uses the lens of Corrosive and Constructive Capital to examine the impact of investment on democratic and market institutions. The CAI’s work sits at the confluence of corporate governance, the rule of law, and the business and investment climate, with patterns of trade and investment worldwide. Mr Hontz is active in developing the capacity of business organizations to advocate on behalf of member interests and helping these organizations to foster a culture of inclusive business growth. In prior roles, Mr Hontz was an associate at a law firm and a vice president at an investment bank, where he reviewed complex alternative investment products. He is frequently featured in media as an expert on economic reform and policy in Ukraine and other former Soviet states.

Jason Hsu

Hudson Institute

Jason Hsu is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute, where he focuses on the United States’ technological cooperation with allies and partners.

From 2016 to 2020, Mr. Hsu served as legislator-at-large in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan (the national parliament) where he focused on defense, technology, trade, and foreign policy. Previously, he was an Edward Mason Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He was also a visiting scholar at the Paul Tsai China Center at Yale Law School where he led a research team in designing a war game on a Taiwan Strait blockade contingency.

Mr. Hsu has lectured widely at colleges and universities, including the University of Toronto, University of California San Diego, IE University, the US Naval War College, Yale University, the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, University of California Berkeley, and Stanford University.

Mr. Hsu was a recipient of the Eisenhower Fellowship in 2022 and was a Draper Hills Summer Fellow at Stanford University’s Center for Democracy Development and Rule of Law. He was a fellow of the US State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program in 2019.

Mr. Hsu received an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a BA from National Chengchi University.

Clara Kaluderovic

Mental Help Global

Clara Kaluderovic is a technology entrepreneur based in Houston. She is currently the Co- Founder and CEO of Mental Help Global (MHG), a non-profit company established alongside Mitzi Perdue, and General David Petraeus, that has built a LLM for mental health support to help address the vast unmet need for mental health assistance in Ukraine and other conflict zones. The model aims to support both active military, veteran and the general population. MHG has partnerships with the Harvard Refugee Trauma Program, Salisbury University, the First Lady of Ukraine’s Mental Health Coordination Center and the Open Ukraine Foundation. She is also the Co-Founder of ex2, an AI nonprofit which is supporting the development of LLM’s in Ukraine and in Iraq for local dialects including Kurdish and Iraqi. They have established an AI center at the American University of Iraq-Sulaymaniyah. In prior technology roles, Clara served as a co-founder in a company focused on secure chip design and improving sustainability in data centers. Clara is of Ukrainian heritage. Her passion lies in leading and contributing to next generation technology companies that hold the potential for lasting commercial and social impact. She is also a Schmidt fellow at the Special Competitive Studies Project, which is focused on policy development around geopolitics and cutting-edge technologies. It has sparked an interest in fostering lessons learned between countries particularly Ukraine and Taiwan. She is also a young professional member at the Council of Foreign Relations.

Marek Kapička

CERGE-EI

Marek Kapička has been serving as the Director of CERGE, Charles University, and the Economics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences (EI) since January 2024. He is also a member of the Executive and Supervisory Committee of CERGE-EI. Previously he served as Deputy Director for Research at CERGE-EI from 2013 to 2015. He has been an Associate Professor with Tenure (under US permanent charter) at CERGE-EI since 2013. He is a Docent (Associate Professor) at CERGE, Charles University and a Senior Researcher at the Economics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences. He was also an Associate Professor at U.C. Santa Barbara. He received his M.A. in Economics from Charles University and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.

Marek won the Young Economist Award from the European Economic Association in 2003, and the J. E. Purkyně Fellowship from the Czech Academy of Sciences in 2013-2017. He has published in journals such as Review of Economic Studies, Journal of Monetary Economics, Review of Economic Dynamics, and American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics.

Koray Köse

Köse Advisory

Koray Köse is a futurist, technology and AI evangelist, renowned public speaker, and expert in geopolitical risk and value chains. With over two decades of experience, he has advised executives, investors, policy makers and global stakeholders across verticals and industries such as automotive, defence, pharma, life sciences, IT, high-tech, and FMCG. As a trusted advisor and published author of 100+ works, Koray specializes in global risk management, geopolitics, AI, advanced technologies, and value chain strategies. He designs disruptive business frameworks, governance processes, and full-scale go-to-market and transformation projects that drive scale, efficiency, resilience, and sustainable growth. He collaborates with technology firms, corporations, think-tanks, NGOs, venture capital and private equity funds, consulting and research and global conferences organizations to deliver actionable, thought-provoking insights and customized strategies, enabling organizations to claim leadership and maximize impact, reach, and competitiveness. Koray is a Board Member of the Slave-Free Alliance, part of Hope for Justice, and a Senior Fellow at the GeoTech Research Center of GLOBSEC, led by General John R. Allen. He is also an active member of the Forbes Technology Council and a participant in NATO’s 2030: NATO-Private Sector Dialogues. His insights are frequently featured in leading media outlets including The New York Times, The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Reuters and CNBC.

Scott LaFoy

Vice President for Nuclear and Technology Security Programs, Exiger

Scott LaFoy is Exiger’s Vice President for Nuclear and Technology Security Programs, where he focuses on the application of AI to protect and manage supply chains for highly targeted technologies across the nuclear, emerging technology, and strategic defense sectors. His current efforts include AI-driven projects for research security, counter-malign/unwanted influence campaigns, and sensitive supply chain risk management.

Scott has spent his career on the tracking and analysis of nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and emerging strategic technologies, particularly in North Korea and China.

Lady Olga Maitland

Families for Defence

Lady Olga Maitland is President of the Defence and Security Forum, an independent organization she founded in 1983 to promote informed debate on global defense and security issues. A former Member of Parliament (1992–1997), she served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Rt. Hon. Sir John Wheeler, Minister of State for Northern Ireland (Security), from 1995 to 1997.

Beyond Parliament, Lady Maitland has played an active role in international relations and business diplomacy. She is Honorary President of the Algeria–British Business Council and has chaired its board from 2005 to 2025. She serves on the advisory boards of Audere International and the Bosporus Cooperation Summit. Earlier in her career, she was a journalist and broadcaster for the Sunday Express, Daily Mail, and other leading media outlets (1967–1997), and is the author of Margaret Thatcher: The First Ten Years (1997).

Fabrizio Mazza

Marsh McLennan

Fabrizio leads Marsh Credit Specialties’ Public Agency Practice, a dedicated practice for public agencies, delivering risk and capital management solutions to help alleviate concentration and limit constraints, optimise capital and free up resources, enabling public institutions to fulfil their strategic mandates of supporting national exports and investments, contributing to the growth of global cross border trade and investment. Part of Marsh McLennan - the world’s leading professional services firm specializing in risk, strategy, and human capital advisory - the practice sits within Credit Specialties, a global team that delivers payment, performance and country risk and insurance knowledge and solutions to a variety of clients ranging from financial institutions, corporates and public agencies. It specializes in leveraging insurance risk capital to support financing and investment, particularly in infrastructure.

Fabrizio specifically focuses on the interaction between commercial banks, Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), multilateral development banks, development financial Institutions and institutional capital and how the private (re)insurance market can work harmoniously alongside the public sector to meet today’s pressing challenges. Fabrizio holds a degree in International Relations from the University of Bologna, and a MSc in Political Economy from the London School of Economics.

Jock Mendoza-Wilson

Director of International and Investor Relations, System Capital Management

Jock has extensive experience of developing communications strategies and implementing public affairs programmes for leading global corporations to develop governmental, institutional and investor relations.

He joined the leading Ukrainian holding company, System Capital Management, as Director of Corporate Communications in 2005. Since then he has been involved in developing and implementing the company’s communications, government relations and investor relations strategies. Previously, Regional Director of Weber Shandwick, based Dubai, working across the MENA region for private sector and govt clients.

Jock has an honours degree in economics and is Joint Chair of the British Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce. He also serves on the Advisory Boards of Mariupol University and Ukranian NGO, Right to Protect. He is also an Honorary Professor in International Relations at the University of Mariupol.

Michael Miller

Miller C. & Co

Michael is a C-level entrepreneurial executive, strategic innovator and thought leader who is internationally recognized for driving growth and achieving exceptional results in the development of emerging technologies for the aerospace, defense and national security markets. Over his extensive career, he has driven corporate success through securing significant undiluted capital and leading high-performing teams to develop innovative, state-of-the-art technologies at speed and scale. As a former Senior Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Defense, along with proven leadership as a corporate executive, he provides tech companies and investment firms with strategies to successfully overcome the challenging, competitive and bureaucratic government processes, to quickly secure funding and ensure successful transition of technologies into sustainable revenue streams. Michael has held various executive leadership and strategic advisory positions at Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation (VT-ARC), U.S. Strategic Command, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), Joint Forces Command and as a combat aviator in the U.S. Air Force.

Rebecca Nadin

Director of Global Risks and Resilience at ODI Global

Dr Rebecca Nadin is Director of Global Risks and Resilience at ODI Global, a leading global affairs think tank, and Director of the Centre for the Geopolitics of Global Change. She leads a large multidisciplinary team delivering world class geopolitical risk analysis and policy advice on international volatility, energy transitions, conflict, and climate risk.

With over sixteen years’ experience in China, Rebecca offers unique, on the ground insight into China’s worldview and its diplomatic, security and investment strategies, particularly in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and Southeast Asia. She served as a climate risk policy adviser to China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) on the 2013 National Adaptation Strategy, and supported local governments across five provinces and one municipality in the development of the 13th Five-Year Plan Response to Climate Change (2016 to 2020). Previous roles include leading on policy and public diplomacy at the British Embassy in Beijing and the British Council, covering VIP visits, Japan China relations, Central Asia, and energy security.

Rebecca is a published author and media commentator. She holds a PhD in Chinese foreign policy, an MA in International Relations, and a BA in Politics from the University of Sheffield, alongside Chinese language studies at Peking University. She is currently completing an LLM in International Law.

Dr Rebecca Nadin’s communication style is analytical, policy focused and accessible, with a strong emphasis on actionable insights and strategic foresight. Her expertise is shaped by extensive experience across academic research and high level advisory roles on China, climate risk and geopolitics. Her expertise enables clients to anticipate and navigate complex global risks.

General David Petraeus

KKR Global Institute & KKR Middle East

General David Petraeus, U.S. Army (Ret.) is one of the foremost battlefield commanders and strategists of our time. He served over 37 years in the U.S. military culminating his career with six consecutive commands as a general officer, five of which were in combat, including command of the Surge in Iraq, U.S. Central Command, and Coalition Force in Afghanistan. He subsequently served as Director of the CIA, following confirmation by the Senate by a vote of 94 to 0, during a period of significant achievements in the global war on terror.

General Petraeus is Chairman of KKR Middle East, in addition to being a Partner at KKR and Chairman of the KKR Global Institute, which he established in mid-2013. He also serves on corporate boards, is the Kissinger Fellow at Yale University’s Jackson School, is a venture capitalist invested in more than 30 startups, and is the co-author, with Andrew Roberts, of The New York Times’ bestselling book, Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Gaza.

General Petraeus graduated with distinction from the U.S. Military Academy, earned a Ph.D. from Princeton University in international relations and economics, and has held academic appointments at 5 universities in addition to his current position at Yale. He is the only person in US Army history to be the top graduate of both the demanding U.S. Army Ranger School and the year-long Command and General Staff College course. He is currently Co-Chairman of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Global Advisory Council, Senior Vice President of the Royal United Services Institute, and a member of the Trilateral Commission, Council on Foreign Relations, and Aspen Strategy Group, as well as the boards of the Atlantic Council, Institute for the Study of War, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

His awards include four Defense Distinguished Service Medals, the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award, the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, the Combat Action Badge, the Ranger tab, and master parachutist wings. He has also been decorated by 14 foreign countries and is believed to be the only person in uniform to throw out the first pitch of a World Series game and do the coin toss for a Super Bowl. He was runner-up to Vladimir Putin for Time Person of the Year in 2007, the Daily Telegraph Man of the Year, twice a Time 100 selectee, three times a Foreign Policy top public intellectual, Prospect magazine’s Public Intellectual of the Year, one of U.S. News and World Report’s Top 25 Leaders, and sanctioned by Russia (in 2022).

Petr Pudil

BPD partners

Petr Pudil is a co-founder of BPD partners, a leading family office based in Prague, Czech Republic. He co-founded the Czech Coal Group which acquired a leading lignite mining company in 2005. Petr Pudil with other co-investors successfully exited the coal business in 2010. The investment strategy of BPD partners is focused on managing investments in chemical specialties businesses with a key emphasis on environmentally sustainable solutions in mining and other industries, international biotechnology startups. Mr. Pudil is involved in the leading global chemical company Draslovka since 2012, when BPD partners acquired a stake in the company, and is currently Chairman of the Board. BPD partners is also a long-term investor in renewable energy through company Ren Power, operating solar and wind farms across Europe. He is a member of the Board of Directors of GLOBSEC, a leading think-tank in Central Europe, and chairman of the Supervisory Board of Post Bellum, an educational non-governmental non-profit organization. Petr is a co-founder of Kunsthalle Praha, a leading art institution in the Czech Republic, Mr. Pudil is also a member of the International Board of Palais de Tokyo and Tate Modern Acquisition Committee.

Faysal Rahman

Director at Deutsche Bank

Faysal Rahman is a Director at Deutsche Bank, serving as the Global Defence Coordinator. He has played a pivotal role in building the bank's Global Defence Strategy across EMEA, APAC, and the USA, securing regulatory approvals, committing balance sheet resources, and expanding client relationships.

Silvia Reischer

SiReFocus

Silvia Reischer is an expert in geo- and security policy as well as innovative technologies. Key issues concern the promotion and protection of innovative dynamics in the context of geopolitical upheavals and bloc formations. An important field of her activity is the strategic planning, implementation and monitoring of protective measures for the physical, personnel and digital resources of institutions. She acts as an interface between companies and defence policy institutions. She is the founder of the company SiReFocus, which provides executive education to institutions, academia and industry, strategically preparing them for future challenges in these areas. Ms Reischer is a Senior Fellow at the Swiss Institute for Global Affairs and a Senior Advisor at the EBS, European Business School in Oestrich-Winkel (D). Until April 2024 she was authorised representative of the President of the German Federal Intelligence Service for the design of future viability in the BND, where she was responsible for the Education and Training Centre and founded the Forum for Innovative Technologies (Innovation Hub). Prior to that, she headed the Technology and Science Department and the Security Department. As a fully qualified lawyer she worked for many years in various responsible positions in Germany and abroad.

Kile Sears

Semantic Visions

Kile Sears is the Strategic Partner for U.S. Intelligence Solutions at Semantic Visions, where he leads U.S. market strategy, government partnerships, and defense-focused applications of the company’s AI-enabled open-source intelligence platform. His work centers on early warning, influence-operations detection, supply-chain threat analysis, and defense-industrial-base security.

He brings over 15 years of experience in intelligence, cyber risk, and national security, including service as a U.S. Army All-Source Intelligence Officer, Infantryman, and Sniper. Kile served as a Senior Intelligence Advisor to NATO’s Joint Multinational Training Group–Ukraine, supporting Ukrainian forces. During this mission, he alone, received personal recognition from the late Colonel Serhii Kotenko, Hero of Ukraine, for his contributions to multinational training.

In the U.S. defense enterprise, Kile has led cyber and telecommunications risk initiatives at the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), contributed to Insider Threat and Intelligence Policy at the Pentagon, and conducted national-security intelligence analysis at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, focusing on current and emerging threats to the homeland. He has also developed intelligence-led risk frameworks supporting critical infrastructure protection and defense industrial base resilience.

Kile holds a B.S. from Indiana University, is completing a Master’s in Applied Intelligence at Georgetown University, and is fluent in English and Spanish.

Paolo Surico

London Business School

Paolo Surico is Professor of Economics at the London Business School, a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), and a leading expert on macroeconomics and public policy, especially on the role of governments and defence spending to foster innovation. His research has been published in top academic journals and has shaped policy debates on monetary policy, fiscal policy, and inequality. He has served as consultant to major international institutions, including the European Central Bank, the Bank of England, and the European Commission, and has extensive experience advising governments on the design of effective economic policy. He has also supervised and mentored numerous PhD students who have gone on to successful careers in academia and policymaking.

Andrew Thomis

Cohort plc

Andrew was appointed as Chief Executive of Cohort plc in May 2009. Andrew graduated with an MEng degree from Imperial College London in 1987. He spent nine years in science, technology and policy roles in the UK Ministry of Defence. After a period working with public and private sector clients at Capita plc’s management consultancy arm, he joined Alvis plc in a role covering strategy, M&A and business development. Following the acquisition of Alvis by BAE Systems in 2004, Andrew worked with Nick Prest and Stanley Carter on the creation of Cohort plc, acting as Finance Director during the flotation and subsequently Corporate Development Director. From 2007 to 2009 he was Managing Director of Cohort’s subsidiary MASS. He was appointed as Chief Executive of Cohort plc in May 2009. Andrew is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology.

Simon Tobelem

Realis

Simon Tobelem is of French and Israeli heritage, educated in Israel, with a BA in International Relations and Finance and an MBA in Finance & Entrepreneurship from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, of which he is now a Trustee.

Simon has various professional roles in banking, corporate finance venture capital, and large corporations. He was the youngest economic advisor to the Minister of Finance in Israel during the Oslo Peace Process (Avraham Shohat during Itzhak Rabin mandate) and he has then worked in Venture Capital as well as with Israeli defence and security company Elbit Systems.

Simon has extensive international experience, including living in France, Israel, Singapore, West-Africa and Central America, and his current focus on corporate finance, advisory, and venture capital in the Middle East / Africa, with his new VC fund ABRA Ventures. He launched the first digital corporate bank in the world in 2018 and has just launched a second one with a Canadian license.

Over the years, Simon has developed strong relationships in the GCC region, including an office in Abu Dhabi and recent speaking engagements at the Global Health Conference in Riyadh.

Robert Vass

Globsec

Róbert Vass is a president and founder of GLOBSEC, a pan-European policy institution committed to enhancing security and European competitiveness. GLOBSEC’s mission is to represent the constructive voice of the broad CEE region and shape the future by generating new ideas and solutions for a better and safer world. Robert currently manages an international team of more than 80 people composed of 12 different nationalities with GLOBSEC’s presence in Prague, Vienna, Brussels, Washington, and Kyiv. The annual GLOBSEC Forum belongs to the top 5 conferences in the world and is regularly attended by heads of state, influential policy makers, and business executives, as well as respected thought leaders from the non-governmental and other sectors. Róbert works with a widely respected global network of leaders from both the public and private sector and is an active Advisor of the Schmidt Futures’ International Strategy Forum Network and a member of the DIGITALEUROPE’s The Dual-Use Technology Award Jury.

Lesia Vasylenko

Member of Parliament, Ukraine

Lesia Vasylenko is a Ukrainian Member of Parliament and public international lawyer (LL.M, UCL), recognised for her international leadership on justice, accountability, and Ukraine’s global advocacy during wartime. She chairs the UK–Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group, serves as Deputy Chair of Ukraine’s delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and First Vice-Chair of its Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights. Lesia is also a member of Ukraine’s delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), where she has served as President of the Forum of Women Parliamentarians and represented the European geopolitical group on the IPU Executive Committee, advancing cooperation, gender equality, and democratic dialogue among parliaments worldwide.

A frequent speaker and commentator on BBC, CNN, Sky News, Al Jazeera, and France 24, Lesia is known for her principled advocacy on state responsibility, sanctions, and the international prosecution of war crimes. Her current focus includes the recovery and repurposing of frozen Russian assets, development of Ukraine’s MilTech and innovation sectors, green recovery, and restoration of human capital and mental resilience as key pillars of Ukraine’s sustainable renewal.

Martin Vladimirov

Director of the Energy and Climate Program at the Center for the Study of Democracy

Martin Vladimirov is the Director of the Energy and Climate Program at the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD), a European public policy institute, where he works on the geoeconomics of energy and economic security. For the past decade, Mr. Vladimirov has been also exploring the threat from malign economic influence from authoritarian countries like Russia and China, co-authoring the Kremlin Playbook series. Martin is also managing the Energy and Climate Security Risk Index, and is spearheading CSD’s work on strengthening the sanctions regime against Russia.

Susan E. Walton

Chair, Price of War Symposium

Susan E. Walton is a seasoned finance executive with over 25 years of experience leading global institutional investment research franchises for top-tier investment banks in London, New York, and Hong Kong. Her career reflects a deep expertise in navigating complex financial markets, coupled with a strategic focus on geopolitics and geoeconomics. Susan serves as a board member and senior advisor to leading think tanks, universities, and social enterprises that intersect with the institutional investment sector. Key among these are CERGE-EI US Foundation where she serves and Vice Chair; Senior Advisor to ODI Global, and Senior Fellow at Globsec. Her advisory roles have cultivated an exceptional network across international political and business circles, particularly within defense, national security, and financial services. This network positions her as a key connector between institutional investors and geopolitical stakeholders.

Justin Webb

BBC

Justin Webb is a journalist, broadcaster and author, who co-presents the influential Today Programme on BBC Radio 4. Since joining the BBC in 1984, he has held numerous prominent positions, serving variously as a foreign correspondent, including as the BBC’s chief Washington Correspondent, BBC News’ North American Editor, and as a television anchor for BBC One’s Breakfast News. His autobiography, The Gift of a Radio: My Childhood and other Train Wrecks (Doubleday) was published in 2022 to positive reviews.

General Craig Whelden

Senior Executive Service

Craig’s leadership journey began as an Eagle Scout at age 14. Thirty years later, he was the youngest General in the United States Army. Combined with another nine years as a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) with the U.S. Marine Corps, he has led thousands of Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Civilians, having served 10 years in Europe and 12 in the Pacific. In 2011, he was inducted into the Purdue University ROTC Hall of Fame. In March 2019, he published Leadership: The Art of Inspiring People to Be Their Best, winning four national book awards and attaining #1 international bestseller status on Amazon. Craig is now a Global Fortune 500 speaker and World Affairs speaker for four luxury cruise lines. He lives in Bluffton, South Carolina.