Matthew Kroenig

Matthew Kroenig is one of Washington’s most influential national security thinkers. He consistently advocates for the continued relevance of nuclear superiority, credible deterrence, and limited military action as pillars of effective strategy in today’s world.

As Vice President and Senior Director of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, Kroenig confronts global threats such as nuclear proliferation and authoritarian aggression to long-term competition with China and Russia. As the Council’s Director of Studies, he also shapes the institution’s intellectual direction during an era of strategic uncertainty.

A leading voice in nuclear strategy debates, Matthew Kroenig has long argued that strategic superiority matters. His argument played out on the global stage during the Iran nuclear crisis. As early as 2011, Kroenig publicly made the case that US military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities might be necessary. An idea that many dismissed at the time as too extreme. But over a decade later, as the window for diplomatic solutions has narrowed and Iran edges closer to breakout capability, events have aligned with his forecast. Kroenig maintains that military action isn’t a rush to war but a strategic move to restore deterrence, halt a dangerous proliferation path, and send a clear message to adversaries and allies alike.

Matthew Kroenig has served under Republican and Democratic administrations in the Department of Defense and intelligence community and currently serves as a commissioner on the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States. His contributions have earned him the Secretary of Defense’s Award for Outstanding Achievement.

A tenured professor at Georgetown University, Kroenig was named one of the 25 most-cited political scientists of his generation. He is the author or editor of eight books, including The Return of Great Power Rivalry, which frames today’s global tensions as a long arc struggle between democracy and autocracy. His commentary regularly appears in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy (where he co-authors the “It’s Debatable” column), CNN, and BBC.