Rear Admiral (LH) Wilhelm Tobias Abry was born in 1968 and joined the German Navy in 1988 as midshipman at the Naval Academy, Mürwik. He graduated from the University of the German Armed Forces, Munich with a Master’s degree in Political Sciences and International Law. After completion of his academic studies Rear Admiral Abry successfully took part in the initial warfare training. As a young officer he has been privileged to serve as Flag Lieutenant to the Head of Naval Office before completing the Principal Warfare Officer Course at Naval Operations School, Bremerhaven. Later he participated in the higher Staff and Command Course, Führungsakademie Hamburg.

In his early stages at sea Rear Admiral (LH) Abry served as Operations Officer within the 2^nd Fast Patrol Boat Squadron. He commanded the Fast Patrol Boat Puma. He was appointed Executive Officer Frigate Karlsruhe and served as Commanding Officer on the Frigate Niedersachsen. His seagoing staff appointment included Head of Maritime Battle Staff of Flotilla 2. As Commanding Officer Fast Patrol Boat Puma and I.Officer Frigate Karlsruhe he was deployed in Operation Enduring Freedom at the Horn of Africa. As Commanding Officer of Frigate Niedersachsen his operational commitments included Counter Piracy Operation ATALANTA and Operation Active Endeavour. Shore Appointments included his deployments to Operation ATALANTA as Chief of Staff CTF 465, and to EU NAVFOR Somalia as Flag Officer Deputy Operation Commander.

Rear Admiral (LH) Abry has a broad range of staff officer appointments in higher command authorities. These include Desk Officer Operations Division NATO HQ International Military Staff, Brussels, Personnel Manager Federal Office of German Armed Forces Personnel Management, Deputy Branch Chief at the MOD Operations Division, Assistant Chief of Staff Joint Assessment at NATO Joint Force Command Brunssum and Branch Head Central Affairs at the Office of the Chief of Defense.

More recently Rear Admiral Abry was assigned as Commandant of the Naval Academy Mürwik and DCOS Operations at German Navy HQ before being appointed as Division Head Military Policy and Operations at the Ministry of Defense in 2022.

Paula Alvarez-Couceiro is a future trends analyst with the strategy division at Navantia, Spain’s state-owned ship building company. She has previously worked as an open-source analyst for Martin-Crumpton Group, and a graduate fellow for Pallas Advisors, both in Washington D.C. She graduated from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in 2020 with a degree in Strategic Studies and International Economics.

She is a published author and experienced researcher with a demonstrated history of working in the defense sector both in the United States and in Europe. She seeks to apply her skills and global perspective to the mission of analyzing and informing foreign policy and is particularly interested in strategically evaluating the transatlantic defense space and the interaction of different players across countries.

She has participated in several panels on European defense issues and women’s empowerment including with The United States Military Academy at West Point, IE, Salesforce, and Mujeres Avenir.

James H. Bergeron assumed duties as Political Advisor to Commander, Allied Maritime Command in Northwood, United Kingdom on 1 September 2013 . Previously the POLAD to Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO from July 2005 as a member of the US Government Service, he is considered to be one of NATO's most experienced foreign policy advisors in the fields of maritime and joint expeditionary operations. He has served as POLAD in eighteen US and NATO exercises; as POLAD to the NATO Response Force exercise Steadfast Jaguar in Cape Verde and NATO Riga Summit mission in 2006; in a national capacity as POLAD to EUCOM Commander Joint Task Force Lebanon during the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah Conflict; to Commander US Naval Forces Europe during the August 2008 Russia-Georgia Conflict and as POLAD to STRIKFORNATO for four Baltic Host and two BALTOPs exercises to reassure Allies of NATO solidarity. From March until July 2011 he served as the Political Advisor to NATO's CJTF Operation Unified Protector in support of UNSCR 1973 operations in Libya. He is regularly consulted on NATO maritime strategy, transformational issues and NATO-EU relations, and was one of the drafters of the Alliance Maritime Strategy. Prior to his appointment in Naples, Mr. Bergeron served as EUINATO Policy Advisor on the Staff of Commander, US Naval Forces Europe, London.

Professor Bergeron entered the US government service following a career in academia. He holds a BA in History and English Literature from the University of the State of New York, MA in Political Science from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, Juris Doctor magna cum laude from the College of Law at Syracuse University and Master of Laws in European Union Law from the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London, as a British Foreign and Commonwealth Scholar. Following completion of the LL.M. in 1991, Mr. Bergeron joined the Faculty of Law at University College Dublin, Ireland, where he specialized in European Union law, European affairs, comparative antitrust, international law and jurisprudence. From 1991-2000 he held visiting appointments at the Nicolas Copernicus University, Torun, Jageillonian University, Krakow, Riga Graduate School of Law; Onati International Institute for the Sociology of Law, Spain and S1. John's University College of Law, New York. In 1993 he developed the draft Estonian Code of Military Justice under the US European Command's military-to-military contacts program. Under the auspices of the European Commission he assisted in the revision of the Latvian Constitution from 1998-9 and training of Hungarian public prosecutors in EU law from 1999-2000. He served briefly on the Forward Studies Unit of the President of the European Commission.

His connections to the naval life are oflong standing. Mr. Bergeron entered the United States Navy in 1976. After two years of nuclear propulsion training, he served as a reactor operator onboard USS ULYSSES S. GRANT (SSBN 631) and USS HOUSTON (SSN 713) in Newport News, Virginia. In July 1982 he reported to Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. Upon commissioning as an officer and completion of submarine and Poseidon missile schools, he served on USS GEORGE C. MARSHALL (SSBN 654) as Assistant Weapons Officer. This was followed by twenty-one years in the US Navy Reserve, supporting US Naval Forces Europe, US Embassy Dublin and Allied Forces Southern Command in the areas of politico-military analysis and advice, partnership engagement and security cooperation. Commander Bergeron retired from the Navy Reserve in October 2007.

Jim Bergeron has published several articles and book chapters on legal, political and international security topics, and is the editor, with Peter Fitzpatrick, of Europe's Other: European Law from Modernity to Post-Modernity (Ashgate 1998). He has spoken at numerous institutions, defense colleges, universities and think tanks including the Center for Naval Analysis, Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, Chatham House, NATO Defense College, Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, RUSI, Institute for International Affairs (IA!) Rome, National Defense University, Wilton Park and the Maritime Warfare School Halifax. He has had a long involvement with the American Bar Association, and currently serves as the ABA liaison to NATO, the International Maritime Organisation and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Personal decorations include the Meritorious and Superior Civilian Service Medals, Navy Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Navy Achievement Medal, NATO Libya Medal and the Golden Badge of the Estonian Ministry of Defence. Interests include naval history, art, early music, political theory, and military strategy.

Prof. Dr. Sven Biscop (born in Willebroek, Belgium in 1976) read political sciences and obtained his PhD at Ghent University, where today he is a professor, lecturing on the grand strategy of the European Union and the other great powers, and on Belgian foreign and defence policy. In addition, he is the Director of the Europe in the World Programme at the Egmont – Royal Institute for International Relations in Brussels, the think-tank associated with the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Sven is an Associate Member of the Royal Academy for Overseas Sciences of Belgium, and an Honorary Fellow of the European Security and Defence College (ESDC), an EU agency where he lectures for diplomats, military and officials from all EU Member States. He is also a regular speaker at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels and at the People’s University of China in Beijing, where he is a Senior Research Fellow. His latest book is Grand Strategy in 10 Words - A Guide to Great Power Politics in the 21st Century (Bristol University Press, 2021). Sven has been honoured with the cross of Officer of the Order of the Crown of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Grand Decoration of Honour of the Republic of Austria. Sven lives in Brussels with his Taiwanese-Belgian husband Aberu, amidst a great many books, military paraphernalia, and chinoiseries. Unfortunately they travel too often to keep a cat.

Dr. Heiko Borchert runs Borchert Consulting & Research AG, a strategic affairs consulting boutique. He is Co-Director of the Defense AI Observatory, Associate Fellow at the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies, and subject matter expert at the Hague Center for strategic Studies. His areas of expertise cover a broad set of issues including armaments cooperation, defense innovation and the role of emerging technologies as well as maritime security. Dr Borchert studied international relations, business administration, economics and law at the University of St. Gallen, where he also received his PhD.

Moritz Brake is a researcher at the German Institute for Defence and Strategic Studies (GIDS), Senior Fellow at the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies (CASSIS), and a reserve officer in the German Navy. He received his PhD from the War Studies Department at King's College London in July 2022 with a thesis on the contemporary German Navy as a tool of foreign policy. He is a member of the German Maritime Institute (DMI) and an auditeur of the French Institut des Hautes Études de Défense National (IHEDN). In addition to a master's degree in War Studies from King's College London, Mr. Brake holds a nautical patent and an engineering degree in Nautical Science from Jade Hochschule in Elsfleth, Germany. On active duty in the Navy, he most recently served as a youth officer in a public lecturer role as a security policy officer on behalf of the German government, and in addition to sea time on merchant and warships, served in the UN mission UNIFIL (Eastern Mediterranean, Lebanon, 2007) and the EU anti-piracy mission ATALANTA off the Horn of Africa (2010 & 2011).
His research focuses on maritime security and strategy - especially in the context of German overall strategy. In addition, he deals with cyber security and is part of the space strategy research cluster of CASSIS.

Justin Burke was the 2022 Michael and Deborah Thawley Scholar in International Security at CSIS and the Lowy Institute in Sydney, Australia. He is also a non-resident fellow at the Center for Maritime Strategy and Security at the Institute for Security Policy at Kiel University, Germany.

Justin is currently completing a PhD at Macquarie University in Sydney, where he also teaches. His research interests include the uses of submarines in naval diplomacy, the AUKUS pact, and defence and security policy more generally. In addition to authoring research for the Royal Australian Navy’s Sea Power Centre and other scholarly publications, his writings on defence and security regularly appear in print and online in Australia and internationally.

Previously he was a journalist with The Australian newspaper and the Yomiuri Shimbun of Japan.

Mr. Paul Chamberlain is a PhD candidate at the Australian National University, studying in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs. His research topic is the role of navies in the conduct of strategic diplomacy and statecraft in East Asia, with the case studies of Australia, Japan, and Singapore.

He previously worked for the Government of Canada in a variety of Defence, Security, and Intelligence positions. The bulk of his career has been spent in the Defence Policy field within the Department of National Defence.  Recent postings include as the Policy Advisor to the Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) where Mr. Chamberlain was responsible for providing policy advice on domestic and international issues as well as maintaining the strategic direction of RCN global activities.

Before beginning his Doctoral studies in February 2022, Mr. Chamberlain worked in the Directorate of Asia-Pacific Policy and was the lead for Canada’s Defence relations with states in Southeast Asia and ASEAN. Other positions include a secondment in the Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre (ITAC) at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), with responsibility for Southeast and Northeast Asia.

1985 Joined the Bundeswehr
1985 – 1986 Officer education and training (Crew VII/85), Naval Academy, Mürwik, Flensburg
1986 – 1990 Studies in mechanical engineering, Bundeswehr University/Harburg Technical University, Hamburg
1990 – 1991 A-level underwater weapons specialist training
1991 – 1993 ASW Officer, Destroyer MÖLDERS, Kiel
1994 – 1995 Exchange Officer, HMS CUMBERLAND, Plymouth (GBR) 1995 – 1996 B-level surface weapons training
1996 – 2000 Various Operational Posts as Officer, Destroyer MÖLDERS, Kiel
2000 – 2002 42nd Admiral Staff Officers Course, Bundeswehr Command and Staff College, Hamburg
2002 – 2004 Desk Officer, Minstry of Defence Naval Staff III 2, Bonn
2004 – 2006 Executive Officer, Frigate BRANDENBURG, Wilhelmshaven
2006 – 2008 Desk Officer J5 IPL Branch, Joint Forces Command, Naples (ITA)
2008 – 2010 Commanding Officer, Frigate AUGSBURG, Wilhelmshaven
2010 – 2013 Desk Officer, Office of Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister of Defence, Thomas Kossendey, Berlin
2013 – 2014 Chief of Operations Division, Flotilla 2, Wilhelmshaven
2015 – 2017 Special Commissioner Type 125 Frigates, German Navy Headquarters, Rostock
2017 – 2019 Chief of Branch, Maritime Operations, Bundeswehr Joint Forces Operations Command, Potsdam
2019 Head of Naval Concepts and Development Branch, German Navy Headquarters, Rostock

Sidharth Kaushal's research at RUSI covers the impact of technology on maritime doctrine in the 21st century and the role of sea power in a state's grand strategy.

Sidharth holds a doctorate in International Relations from the London School of Economics, where his research examined the ways in which strategic culture shapes the contours of a nation's grand strategy.

Rear Admiral (LH) Sascha H. Rackwitz was appointed Commander Flotilla 1 in January 2023.

He is responsible for the administrative command and force provision of all naval, naval infantry and maritime special operations forces of the German Navy in the Baltic Sea: the naval stations of Kiel, Eckernförde and Warnemünde; 1 Submarine Squadron; 1 Corvette Squadron; 3 Minewarfare Squadron; Auxiliary Squadron; Naval Infantry Batallion (Seebataillon); Maritime Special Operations Forces Command (Kommando Spezialkräfte Marine) with together around 4700 personnel and more than 30 ships and submarines.

Sascha Rackwitz joined the Navy in 1991. After taking a master’s degree in history and political sciences at the armed forces university in Munich he qualified as a submarine warfare officer and sailed for several years as weapons and operations officer on submarines. After a two year term as flag-aide to the commanding admiral of the northern military territorial district in Kiel and his principal warfare officers training at the operations school he assumed command of submarine U24.

Upon graduation from the command and staff college in 2008 Sascha served as executive officer to the director staff, armed forces staff, and later as deputy branch head for NATO strategy in the Federal Ministry of Defence. He has been privileged to command 1 Submarine Squadron from 2012 to 2013, operational home to all German submarines, AGI and the hydro-acoustic analysis centre and the submarine training centre of the German Navy.

After his tour in command of the submarine force, Sascha served as defence advisor to the German ambassador to the Political and Security-Policy Committee (PSC) of the Council of the European Union in Brussels and as military assistant to the chief German Navy. Following that he taught operational art at the command and staff college for two years before returning to the fleet as deputy commander and chief of staff of Flotilla 1 in Kiel. Prior to his current appointment as commander Flotilla 1, he served as branch head central affairs and senior executive officer to the director-general armed forces policy in the Federal Ministry of Defense.

He participated in several deployments, notably as skipper of U24 in NATO operations in the eastern Mediterranean, as CTG421.04 in the WESTLANT-deployment with the US Navy, and as commander of NATO’s Aegean Activity.
In his spare time he is an avid but very untalented golfer. Two of his three children have already joined the Navy as well, the youngest will be graduating from high school in 2023.

Sascha and his wife Mirjam live close to Eckernförde, the submarine base.

Dr. Alix Valenti is a defence and security expert with over 15 years of international work experience. As a defence and security journalist focusing on naval procurement and strategy around the world she has published articles in a wide variety of defence media, including IHS Jane's, Shephard Media and Armada International; she was also editor in chief of Naval Forces for two years.
Dr Valenti also regularly works on projects for the European Commission in the area of justice and home affairs. She holds a PhD in Development Planning from UCL, where she studied the impact of international organisations on the institutional and urban reconstruction of countries after conflict.

Professor Ryan Wadle, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the John B. Hattendorf Center for Maritime Historical Research. His scholarly interests include naval strategy and policy, organizational culture, the military and the media, and the U.S. experience in Afghanistan. His published works have been recognized by the Society for Military History and the North American Society for Oceanic History. Prior to joining the Hattendorf Center, he served on the faculty at Air University’s eSchool of Graduate Professional Military Education and also as part of the Afghanistan Study Team at the U.S. Army’s Combat Studies Institute.