Gary Espinas - Defense Security Cooperation University

Faculty

Regional Advising

Mr. Gary Espinas joined the Institute for Security Governance (ISG) in May 2017 and currently serves as a Europe Regional Program Lead in Advising & Consulting (A&C). Mr. Espinas works with partner nations in Europe on Institutional Capacity Building (ICB), specifically in the areas of strategy, plans, and policy; resource management; human resource management; and defense procurement.

Prior to joining ISG, Mr. Espinas spent 26 years as a United States Army Field Artillery and Foreign Area Officer (FAO), retiring as a Colonel. As a FAO, he served multiple joint assignments as a political-military officer and conventional arms control advisor. Previously, Mr. Espinas led Field Artillery formations at the tactical level, including a combat deployment to Iraq.

In his role as a FAO, Mr. Espinas was Military Professor of National Security Affairs and the FAO Chair at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, where he taught a course on Russian foreign policy. As Director for Russia, Caucasus, and Black Sea in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), Mr. Espinas supported senior OSD leadership engagements in the region. During assignments as a Political-Military Advisor in the Department of State and the United States Embassy in Moscow, Russia, Mr. Espinas supported a wide range of negotiations, consultations, and engagements.

Mr. Espinas holds a Master of Arts in Russian Regional Studies from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley. He also earned a Master of Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College. Mr. Espinas is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Liberal Studies from Georgetown University and serves as an Adjunct Instructor of Political Science at the United States Naval Academy. Mr. Espinas speaks Russian and Spanish.