Olga Oliker

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Manager, International and Security Policy Group; Senior International Policy Analyst
Washington Office

Education

M.P.P., John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; B.A. in international studies, Emory University

Overview

Biography

Olga Oliker is a senior international policy analyst at the RAND Corporation. Oliker's areas of expertise include security-sector reform in the conflict, post-conflict, and development contexts and U.S. and international efforts to advance reform in countries in transition. Regionally, her work has focused on the countries of the former Soviet Union as well as on Iraq, Afghanistan, and other countries throughout the world. Her current research focuses primarily on international relations and national security policy, particularly as regards countries in conflict and transition. In early 2004, Oliker served as a special advisor for national security affairs to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad, where she focused on assisting in the creation of Iraqi national security decisionmaking structures. Before coming to RAND in 1999, Oliker worked as an independent consultant and held positions in the U.S. Departments of Defense and Energy. Oliker received her B.A. in international studies from Emory University and her M.P.P. from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Research Focus

Recent Projects

  • Current and historical development of Afghanistan's national security forces
  • Russian foreign policy and deterrence strategy
  • Iraq's migration crisis

Selected Publications

Olga Oliker, Audra Grant, Dalia Dassa Kaye, The Impact of U.S. Military Drawdown in IRaq on Displaced and Other Vulnerable Populations, RAND Corporation (OP-272), 2010

Olga Oliker, et al, Russian Foreign Policy: Sources and Implications, RAND Corporation (MG-768), 2009

David C. Gompert, Olga Oliker, Brooke Stearns Lawson, Keith Crane, K. Jack Riley, Making Liberia Safe: Transformation of the National Security Sector, RAND Corporation (MG-529), 2007

Olga Oliker et al., U.S. Policy Options for Iraq: A Reassessment, RAND Corporation (MG-613), 2007

Olga Oliker and David Shlapak, U.S. Interests in Central Asia: Policy Priorities and Military Roles, RAND Corporation (MG-338), 2005

Olga Oliker, et al., Aid During Conflict: Interaction Between Military and Civilian Assistance Providers in Afghanistan, September 2001-June 2002, RAND Corporation (MG-212), 2004

Languages

Russian

Recent Media Appearances

Interviews: Bloomberg News; Business Week; CNN; Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service; NPR; Voice of America; Washington Times

Commentary: Baltimore Sun; Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service

Commentary

This May Be a Key Year, but Alas Not a Decisive One — Aug 1, 2010

  • Europe's World

Kosovo and South Ossetia More Different Than Similar — Aug 25, 2008

  • RFERL.org, the website of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty

Make Room for Refugees — Dec 16, 2007

  • Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

No Law and No Order — Dec 2, 2006

  • Parliamentary Brief

Why America Shouldn't Sever Uzbekistan Ties — Sep 6, 2005

  • Baltimore Sun

Iraqi Security Forces: Numbers and Needs — Oct 20, 2004

  • Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service

Publications

Building Afghanistan's Security Forces in Wartime: The Soviet Experience - 2011

Economic Assistance During Stability and Support Operations - 2011

Nuclear Deterrence in Europe: Russian Approaches to a New Environment and Implications for the United States - 2011

Security Force Assistance in Afghanistan: Identifying Lessons for Future Efforts - 2011

The Impact of U.S. Military Drawdown in Iraq on Displaced and Other Vulnerable Populations: Analysis and Recommendations - 2010

Guidebook for Supporting Economic Development in Stability Operations - 2009

Improving Capacity for Stabilization and Reconstruction Operations - 2009

Russian Foreign Policy: Sources and Implications - 2009

The Capabilities That Medium-Armored Forces Bring to the Full Spectrum of Operations - 2009

After Saddam: Prewar Planning and the Occupation of Iraq - 2008

In the Middle of the Fight: An Assessment of Medium-Armored Forces in Past Military Operations - 2008

Soft Power, Hard Power, and Counterinsurgency: The Early Soviet Experience in Central Asia and Its Implications - 2008

Women and Nation-Building - 2008

Iraqi Security Forces: Defining Challenges and Assessing Progress - 2007

Making Liberia Safe: Transformation of the National Security Sector - 2007

The United States Should Reassess Priorities and Consider Next Steps in Iraq - 2007

Two Years After Andijan: Assessing the Past and Thinking Towards the Future - 2007

U.S. Policy Options for Iraq: A Reassessment - 2007

Women and Human Security: The Case of Post Conflict Afghanistan - 2007

RAND Review: Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2006 - 2006

Securing Tyrants or Fostering Reform? U.S. Internal Security Assistance to Repressive and Transitioning Regimes - 2006

Developing Iraq’s Security Sector: The Coalition Provisional Authority’s Experience - 2005

National Security Decision-Making Structures and Security Sector Reform - 2005

Rebuilding Security Forces and Institutions in Iraq - 2005

Three Years After: Next Steps in the War on Terror - 2005

U.S. Interests in Central Asia: Policy Priorities and Military Roles - 2005

U.S. Military Has Important but Limited Long-Term Role in Central Asia - 2005

Aid During Conflict: Interaction Between Military and Civilian Assistance Providers in Afghanistan, September 2001-June 2002 - 2004

Carnegie-RAND Workshop on the Future of the Greater Middle East and the Prospects for U.S.-Russian Partnership - 2004

Clean, Lean and Able: A Strategy for Defense Development - 2004

Defense Development: A New Approach to Reforming Defense Sectors in the Developing World - 2004

Faultlines of Conflict in Central Asia and the South Caucasus: Implications for the U.S. Army - 2003

Too Few Good Men: The Security Implications of Russian Demographics - 2003

A Global Access Strategy for the U.S. Air Force - 2002

Assessing Russia's Decline: Trends and Implications for the United States and the U.S. Air Force - 2002

NATO and Russia: Bridge-Building for the 21st Century Report of the Working Group on NATO-Russia Relations - 2002

Improving Army Planning for Future Multinational Coalition Operations - 2001

Russia's Chechen Wars 1994-2000: Lessons from Urban Combat - 2001

Global Access: Strategy 2000 - 2000

Ukraine and the Caspian: An Opportunity for the United States - 2000