NATO Under New Leadership with Dmitry Vovchuk

GREAT DECISIONS TOPIC: North Atlantic Treaty Organization Under New Leadership

SPEAKER: Dmitry Vovchuk, The Cohen Group

Following NATO’s 75th Anniversary Summit in Washington DC in July 2024, the Alliance faces a new reality. The reelection of Donald Trump and his policies on NATO and Ukraine will determine the course of European security for the foreseeable future. NATO’s new Secretary General, Mark Rutte, must effectively navigate this new political environment to manage deterrence and defense against Russia, preserve Ukraine’s sovereignty, and ensure NATO remains united across the Atlantic. This timely update on NATO will be provided by Mr. Vovchuk ahead of NATO’s next Summit, taking place in The Hague in June.

BIOGRAPHY

Dmitry Vovchuk is a Vice President at The Cohen Group. During his time at the firm, Mr. Vovchuk has led a wide range of client teams in the defense, manufacturing, healthcare, financial, and technology sectors. In addition, Mr. Vovchuk supports The Cohen Group’s Europe practice and he leads the firm’s Ukraine working group, advising clients on sectoral implications of the war in Ukraine and its impacts on European markets.

Prior to joining The Cohen Group, Mr. Vovchuk served in numerous key roles at the US Departments of State and Defense, National Security Council, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). He also held several leadership positions in financial services and management consulting.

Mr. Vovchuk served as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Secretary General of NATO from 2013-2016. In that role, he managed the transition of NATO’s combat operations in Afghanistan to its Resolute Support Mission and helped achieve key milestones in NATO’s ballistic missile defense program. Mr. Vovchuk also led the process to conduct a full review of the US integrated campaign plan as the Director for Strategic Planning in the Office of the Special Presidential Envoy to Counter ISIS.

Additionally, Mr. Vovchuk coordinated the work of the White House Task Force responsible for the 2012 NATO Summit hosted by President Obama in Chicago and served as the National Security Council Director for Eastern Europe from 2012-2013, managing the development and execution of US policy for a region stretching from the Baltic to the Black Sea.

Mr. Vovchuk was selected to the Civil Service as a Presidential Management Fellow in 2006. He led the interagency process to invite new members into NATO at its Summit in Bucharest, Romania, supported the development of NATO’s renewed Strategic Concept, and managed US policy priorities for the Alliance’s International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) mission in Afghanistan. Mr. Vovchuk also served as a Political Officer at the US Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine and in the Office of the Secretary of Defense during the 2008 conflict between Russia and Georgia.

Outside of government, Mr. Vovchuk advised global consumer goods and health care companies on organizational change and strategic alignment as a Principal with the McChrystal Group. He was a registered financial representative and served as Chief of Staff at Ally Bank, supporting the Executive Director for its auto, deposits, online brokerage, and wealth management customer care and experience division.

Mr. Vovchuk is the recipient of the State Department’s Superior and Meritorious Honor Awards, completed a five-year term membership with the Council on Foreign Relations, and taught foreign policy at Queens University of Charlotte. He received a Master’s of Arts in US National Security Policy at Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts from Drew University.

NOTE: Attend in-person at PUMC, no registration required. Attend via Zoom, please register with the Zoom link above.