Professional Summary
Senior defense and security expert with more than three decades of experience in U.S. Army operations, Middle East/Gulf security policy, defense cooperation, and international affairs. Combines operational special-operations and airborne command experience with high-level DoD policy roles, academic research, and regional expertise in the Arabian Peninsula, Levant, South Asia, and Mediterranean littorals. Widely recognized analyst, author, and educator in Gulf security, arms transfers, and stabilization issues.
Professional Experience
Near East South Asia (NESA) Center for Strategic Studies, NDU
Professor of Practice | Washington, D.C. | January 2012- December 2025
- Lead faculty member on Arabian Peninsula, Gulf, and Mediterranean littoral strategic issues.
- Designs and delivers seminars, executive education programs, and Track 1.5/Track 2 dialogues for senior civilian and military officials from the Middle East, South Asia, and North Africa.
- Conducts research and publishes on Gulf security architecture, arms procurement, regional strategy, and defense cooperation.
- Frequent speaker for international conferences, regional policy forums, think tanks, and media outlets.
U.S. Department of Defense
Director for Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Affairs
- Principal DoD policy advisor for U.S. defense relations with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, the UAE, and Yemen.
- Led defense cooperation initiatives, security assistance policy, and crisis-response planning for key regional partners.
- Supervisor on the largest FMS case in history, the Saudi F-15 upgrade case.
Other Senior DoD Policy Roles
- Senior Country Director for Pakistan, Office of the Secretary of Defense
- NATO Operations Director
- Deputy Director for Peacekeeping
- DoD Liaison to the Department of Homeland Security
- Responsibilities included alliance operations, cross-border security, peacekeeping missions, and interagency coordination.
White House Office of National Drug Control Policy
Special Assistant for Strategy / International Law Enforcement Analyst
- Developed strategic frameworks for international narcotics control and cross-government law-enforcement cooperation.
Military Service
United States Army
Colonel (Ret.) | Active & Reserve Service (30 years)
- Commanded airborne and special-operations parachute units.
- Assignments included:
- Sinai Peacekeeping Force
- U.S. Army Europe
- U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM)
- The Joint Staff
- Deployed to Afghanistan and other operational theaters.
- Awards: Bronze Star Medal and multiple commendations.
Education
- B.S., United States Military Academy (West Point) (Phi Kappa Phi)
- M.A., Arab Politics — SOAS, University of London (British Marshall Scholar)
- M.A., War Studies — King’s College London (British Marshall Scholar)
- M.S.S., U.S. Army War College
Additional Professional Education
- Federal Executive Institute
- German Staff College (Higher Officer Seminar)
- NATO Crisis Management Course
- U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare School
- U.S. Army Command and General Staff College
- U.S. Army Ranger School
Areas of Expertise
- Gulf & Arabian Peninsula Security
- Regional Defense Cooperation & U.S.–Gulf Relations
- Arms Transfers & Defense Procurement Markets
- Irregular Warfare & Special Operations
- Stabilization & Reconstruction
- Counterterrorism & Homeland Defense
- NATO & Coalition Operations
- Strategic Planning and Policy Formulation
Publications: Books & Edited Volumes
- Des Roches, David (Ed.). The Arms Trade, Military Services and the Security Market in the Gulf States: Trends and Implications. Gerlach Press, 2016.
Book Chapters
- “The Evolving American Security Role in the Gulf.” In The United States and the Gulf: Shifting Pressures, Strategies, and Alignments, 2015.
- “The Middle East Strategic Alliance and GCC Military Cooperation: A Promise Unfulfilled.” In The Dilemma of Security and Defense in the Gulf Region, 2019.
- “It Didn’t JASTA Be This Way: The Passage of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) as a Failure of Arab Lobbying.” In The Arab Gulf States and the West: Perceptions and Realities, 2018.
- “Gulf Dispute: Military Security in Small States.” In The Gulf Crisis: Reshaping Alliances in the Middle East.
Peer-Reviewed Publications
- “The GCC Rift: Regional and Global Implications.” Middle East Policy 24(4), 2017.
- “The Future of Security in the Middle East.” Middle East Policy Council, 2023.
Policy Papers & Analytical Studies
AGSIW (Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington)
- Dominance versus Disruption: Asymmetry in Gulf Security, 2019.
- “Saudi Arabia’s Patriot Buys: The Political Aspects of Missile Defense,” 2021.
- “Prospects for Biden Administration Arms Sales to the Gulf,” 2021.
- “Iran’s Post-Sanctions Weapon Purchases,” 2020.
Gulf International Forum (GIF)
- “U.S. Security Commitments in the Gulf 2025: The Reluctant Necessity,” 2024.
- “A Fractious, if Enduring Partnership.”
- “Striking Back: Trump’s War on the Houthis.”
Workshop Volumes
- Bahgat, G., & Des Roches, D. (Directors). Defense and Security: Broadening Gulf Security – New Perspectives and Persistent Challenges.
Commentary & Op-Eds (Selected)
War on the Rocks
- “A Base Is More Than Buildings: The Military Implications of the Qatar Crisis,” 2017.
Defense One
- “The U.S. Can Improve Egypt’s Security at Minimal Expense,” 2024.
Middle East Institute
- “We Need It Yesterday: Air-Defense Missile Sales,” 2022.
The National Interest
- “Missile Defense: A Way Forward in the Gulf,” 2014.
- “America in the Gulf: Evolving, Not Leaving,” 2014.
Arabic-Language Publications (Selected)
مجلة آراء حول الخليج
- “٣ قيود تقيّد أيدي أمريكا عن استخدام خيارات عسكرية لحماية الخليج والبحر الأحمر,” 2024.
- “إدارة بايدن لن تخوض مواجهة حاسمة ضد الحوثيين…,” 2024.
- “قلق خليجي من انسحاب أمريكا من أفغانستان…,” 2021.
- “الاتفاق لم يتطرق للسلوك الإيراني…,” 2021.
- (co-authored) “تظل المصالح الأمريكية ثابتة…,” 2021.
مركز المستقبل للدراسات المتقدمة
- “هل يصبح ترامب رئيساً مرة أخرى؟” 2023.
Speaking & Media Engagements
- Moderator, “Strategic and Geopolitical Imperatives for U.S.–Arab Relations,”
33rd Arab–U.S. Policymakers Conference, 18 Nov 2025.
- Moderator, “Impact of Growing Military and Civil Instability in the MENA Region,”
NCUSAR Online Briefing, 14 Mar 2023.
- Moderator, “Strategic Importance of the Middle East and North Africa,”
NCUSAR Briefing Program, 2023.
- Panelist, “U.S.–Arab Relations Defense Dimensions,”
31st Arab–U.S. Policymakers Conference, 2 Nov 2022.
- Panelist, “Yemen in Focus,”
31st Arab–U.S. Policymakers Conference, 2 Nov 2022.
- Moderator, “Changing Security Dynamics of the MENA Region,”
NCUSAR Online Program, 24 Mar 2021.
- Speaker, “Arab–U.S. Defense Cooperation,”
24th Arab–U.S. Policymakers Conference, 14 Oct 2015.
- Speaker, “Defense Cooperation Dynamics: Enhancing Regional Security,”
21st Arab–U.S. Policymakers Conference, 25–26 Oct 2012.
Ongoing Media Presence
Regular guest and moderator for think tank online briefings, programs, and conferences; regular commentator in multiple Arabic language channels as well as BBC television, TRT World television, CBC Television, and others. Selected interviews archived on https://www.youtube.com/@daviddesroches408
Professional Affiliations
- Non-resident Scholar, Arab Gulf States Institute, Washington DC
- Non-resident Scholar, Gulf International Forum, Washington DC
- Senior International Affairs Fellow, National Council on US- Arab Relations
Speaking & Teaching
- Instructor and lecturer at U.S. and international defense colleges.
- Regular keynote and panel speaker for conferences on Gulf security, defense policy, arms markets, and U.S. regional strategy.
- Extensive engagement with senior military, diplomatic, and policy audiences worldwide.
