Olga Oliker

Olga Oliker is Program Director for Europe and Central Asia at the International Crisis Group where she leads the organization’s research, analysis, policy prescription and advocacy in and about Russia, Europe, Turkey, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. She was formerly a senior adviser and director of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Oliker’s research interests center on the foreign and security policies of Russia, Ukraine, and the Central Asian and Caucasian successor states to the Soviet Union, domestic politics in these countries, and U.S. policy towards the region. At CSIS, in addition to her own research and program leadership, Oliker implemented several Track II initiatives, convened a variety of events and conferences, headed the Russian Military Capabilities Working Group, and hosted the Russian Roulette podcast. Prior to CSIS, Oliker held a number of senior posts at the RAND Corporation. In the 1990s, Oliker served at the U.S. Department of Defense. Oliker holds a B.A. from Emory University in international studies, an M.P.P. from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and a Ph.D. in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.