Jim Townsend

Non-Resident Fellow, Carnegie Mellon Institute for Strategy & Technology

Bio

James J. Townsend Jr. (Jim) is a Non-Resident Fellow with the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Strategy & Technology. He is an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), where he is the co-host of the podcast “Brussels Sprouts”, a weekly interview program featuring leaders in the transatlantic community. He also takes part in the Washington Roundtable podcast produced by the Defense & Aerospace Report. Jim is a Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London, a Senior Advisor at the Atlantic Council and teaches a course on transatlantic security at SciencesPo Paris. He was President of the Atlantic Treaty Association from 2020 – 2023.

On January 20th 2017, Jim completed eight years as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (DASD) for European and NATO Policy, capping 34 years of working in defense and foreign policy, mostly on European and NATO issues. His work spanned the last decade of the Cold War, post-Cold War political reconstruction in Europe and Europe's new challenges including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the rise of China. Through his work, he has helped execute US military engagements in almost every conflict from the Gulf War to the reintroduction of US forces into Europe after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He also played critical roles in NATO enlargement, NATO reform, and helping to build bilateral defense relations with the new European democracies coming from the breakup of the Soviet Union.

Before becoming DASD in 2009, Jim was a Vice President of the Atlantic Council and Director of the Council’s Program on International Security (now the Scowcroft Center). Jim joined the Atlantic Council in 2006 after a distinguished Civil Service career at the Pentagon and at NATO. In the 1990s and early 2000s, Jim helped to build a new post-Cold War security environment in Europe as the Country Director for Scandinavia (1990-1993) and the Deputy Director of European Policy (1993-1998).

In 1998, Jim moved to Brussels and worked as the Director of the Defense Plans Division at the US Mission to NATO (1998-2002). He returned to the Pentagon to become the Director of NATO Policy (2002-2003) and finally the Principal Director of European and NATO Policy (2003-2006).

In the 1980s, Jim worked in Foreign Military Sales at the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) as a Country Director for European security assistance and as the assistant to the DSCA Comptroller. Jim's early career also included work in the Department of State, in the Office of Congressman Charles E. Bennett and in the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA).

In 1986, Jim received a direct commission in the U.S. Navy Reserve (intelligence) leaving the Reserves as a Lieutenant Commander.

Jim has been decorated by 11 European nations, including the French Legion of Honor, and multiple times by the Department of Defense for his work, including a Presidential Rank Award (Meritorious Executive).

He has lectured in the US and overseas in academic institutions, at the War Colleges, National Defense University, the Air Force Academy, the Foreign Service Institute, at think tanks and provides commentary in the international press on TV, radio and in newspapers.

Jim earned a B.A. from Duke University and an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in International Economics and American Foreign Policy.