Conn to host Alexander Vindman, former NSC expert on Ukraine

Lecture sponsored by Sound Lab Foundation, Friends of the Connecticut College Library

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman (ret.), the former top Ukraine expert on the National Security Council, will share his perspective on the Russia-Ukraine war at 7 p.m. on Sept. 15 in the Athey Center for Performance and Research at Palmer Auditorium at Connecticut College.

Vindman, whose testimony played a pivotal role in former President Trump’s first impeachment trial, will discuss the war’s global impact, especially the ramifications for the United States.

“Lt. Col. Vindman is a preeminent expert on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and its impact on the global economy and the world,” said Connecticut College President Katherine Bergeron. “We are pleased that the College is able to bring to our campus and to the greater New London community such a distinguished authority on these urgent issues.”

A Ukraine native, Vindman moved to the United States with his father—who had initially fled the Soviet Union—and brothers to start a new life. Vindman went on to have a distinguished career, holding high positions in both the U.S. military and the White House. A decorated combat veteran, he received a Purple Heart after being wounded by a roadside bomb in Iraq.

As the assistant U.S. Army attaché in Russia, Vindman gained a deep understanding of their defense and security apparatus. Because of this regular contact with Russian military and diplomatic leaders, he became a source of knowledge for the White House, leading to positions at the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the National Security Council, most recently as the director for European affairs.

Prior to retiring from the Army, Vindman served as a foreign area officer with assignments in U.S. embassies in Ukraine and Moscow and for the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a political and military affairs officer.

He is currently a Senior Advisor for Vote Vets, a doctoral student and Foreign Policy Institute fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, a Pritzker military fellow at the Lawfare Institute, a board member of the Renew Democracy Initiative nonprofit and a visiting fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House.  

Sponsored by the Sound Lab Foundation, along with the Friends of the Connecticut College Library, this lecture is part of a series that has brought national figures to campus each fall for the last 25 years to discuss social, cultural, political and scientific topics.

This event is free and open to the public.