Volker Perthes

Volker Perthes, Senior Distinguished Fellow, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP)

Dr Volker Perthes is an internationally renowned scholar, commentator, and former UN diplomat. He is currently associated with the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) as a Distinguished Senior Fellow. At the United Nations, he served, among other things, as Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) for Sudan and Head of UNITAMS (Feb 2021-Oct 2023), and as Head of the Independent Strategic Review of UNAMI (Iraq) (Oct 2023-March 2024) with the rank of Under-Secretary-General. From 2005 to 2020, Perthes was the Director and CEO of Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP), the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. He also taught as a professor of international relations at Humboldt-University Berlin. Perthes has authored numerous books and academic articles; he writes regularly in various newspapers and is a frequent media commentator. Most of his publications have focused on current geopolitical dynamics and international institutions; Europe and its international environment; and the Middle East.