A. Wess Mitchell is co-founder and principal at The Marathon Initiative, a U.S. think tank dedicated to the study of great-power competition. He previously served as assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, where he was responsible for diplomatic relations with the 50 countries of Europe and Eurasia, along with the institutions of NATO, the EU and the OSCE. 
 
Mitchell is a regular commentator on international affairs whose articles have appeared in leading outlets including Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post. In 2020, secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg appointed Mitchell to co-chair the 2030 NATO Reflection Group. During the 2012 Presidential campaign, he served on the national security team of governor Mitt Romney. Mitchell is a senior advisor at the U.S. Institute of Peace, vice-chairman and co-founder of the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), and non-resident fellow in the Applied History Project at Harvard University Kennedy School of Government’s Belfer Center. 
 
Mitchell holds a doctorate in political science from Freie Universität in Berlin, a master’s degree in German and European Studies from Georgetown University, and a bachelor’s degree in history from Texas Tech University. He is the author of three books, including The Grand Strategy of the Habsburg Empire and Unquiet Frontier: Rising Rivals, Vulnerable Allies and the Crisis of American Power. His next book, Great Power Diplomacy: Skillful Statecraft Across the Ages, will be published by Princeton University Press next year.
 
Mitchell’s honors include a 2020 prize from the Stanton Foundation for writing in Applied History (with Charles Ingrao), the 2004 Hopper Award at Georgetown University, and decorations from the governments of Poland, Hungary and Slovakia. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations.