World Affairs Council Speaker “Leaving Afghanistan – Easier Said Than Done” on Nov 17

THE OLYMPIA WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCIL LECTURE
THURSDAY, November 17, Olympia Center, 7:30 PM, Room 101
SPEAKER: Dr. Katya Drozdova, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Seattle Pacific University
TOPIC: “Leaving Afghanistan – Easier Said Than Done”
As the United States and its coalition allies struggle with a coherent departure policy in Afghanistan, there are lessons to be learned from the Soviet Union’s misadventure in that country from 1979-89. Dr. Drozdova is eminently qualified to deal with that subject. Born in the former Soviet Union she has been a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, where she was a principal investigator in a study called “Mining Afghan Lessons from the Soviet Era” (MALSE). She studied and translated former top secret records of the Soviet Politburo, the purpose of which was to explore ways that might benefit western forces from the Soviet experience. The results of her study have been used to inform policy-makers, scholars and military leaders.
Dr. Drozdova’s recent research and publications focus on problems of U.S. national and international security and counter-terrorism strategies. In addition to her work at the Hoover Institution, she is also a research fellow at the Naval Postgraduate School and an affiliate with the Empirical Studies of Conflict Project. She previously held research positions at New York University’s Alexander Hamilton Center.
One of her publications, Solving the Afghanistan Puzzle, follows the paper trail of Soviet involvement in Afghanistan – and suggests a great deal about our own involvement there today. Other articles include Dark Memories, a brief history of Soviet torturers and assassins; Intelligence Design, describing how terrorists are getting very good at covering their tracks and how their pursuers must become even better at uncovering them; and Security and Liberty, how to protect the nation against terrorism without sacrificing our liberty.
Dr. Drozdova is currently assistant professor of Political Science at Seattle Pacific University. She holds advanced degrees from Stanford University and New York University.
Posted in World Affairs Lecture.