Executive Director
[email protected]
Vienna, Austria
+43 (1) 236-948-201
Background
Elena K. Sokova is currently the Executive Director of the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation. She was the Deputy Director of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (2015-2019). Previously, she was the Executive Director of the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation (2011-2015). Before the Vienna appointment, she was Assistant Director at CNS and held a number of other research appointments in Monterey. Elena K. Sokova is a member of the Global Agenda Council on Nuclear Security (World Economic Forum) and chair of a working group on the elimination of civil HEU established by the Fissile Material Working Group.
Areas of Research
- Fissile materials security and control
- Trafficking in nuclear and radioactive materials
- International organizations and regimes in nonproliferation and disarmament
- Nuclear nonproliferation issues in Eurasia
- Nuclear nonproliferation and international safeguards issues
- Nonproliferation and disarmament education and training
Education
Elena Sokova holds a Master’s degree in International Public Administration from the Monterey Institute of International Studies (2000) and a Law Degree from the Moscow State University (1992).
CNS Work
- Putin’s War with Ukraine: Voices of CNS Experts on the Russian Invasion
A compendium of CNS expert analysis and commentary on the nuclear ramifications of the war, as well as educational materials for expert and general audience. - Encouraging Gender Balance in the Nuclear Field Through Mentorship, Education, and Networking
Explores challenges women in the nonproliferation field still face and how mentorship and educational opportunities can break some barriers. - Celebrating Women in Nonproliferation
Women colleagues lead initiatives, publish innovative nonproliferation research, serve as mentors, and speak at conferences (or webinars, in the era of COVID-19). - Global Health Security Implications of COVID-19
There are still many grey areas related to the virus, including its origin, emerging genetic variants and security implications. - Strengthening the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and its Verification Regime
Panel discussions on the importance of the CTBT to national/international security and the nonproliferation regime. - The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons: What’s Next
WEBINAR: Speakers address the treaty’s impact on nuclear disarmament and the international nonproliferation regime. - Happy Holidays and Happy New Year (2020)
My CNS colleagues and I wish you a peaceful and joyous New Year. - Implications of US withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty
The latest blow to the global arms control architecture. - Inaugural Intensive Course on Nuclear Nonproliferation and Security for Women in STEM
More than 30 women with a wide variety of technical backgrounds, representing 16 African countries, actively engaged throughout the course. - An Intensive Short Course on Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament for South African Diplomats and Practitioners
In November 2018, CNS co-partnered a one-week intensive course to 30 participants from South Africa.
Bibliography of Recent Publications
- “Understanding Nuclear Weapon Risks: Non-State Actors and Nuclear Weapons,” author of a chapter in UNIDIR study Understanding Nuclear Risks.
- “Improving the Security of All Nuclear Materials,” co-director and co-editor, report by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) and the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation (VCDNP).
- “How can we push for tighter security for nuclear weapons?” op-ed co-authored with Mark Fitzpatrick, IISS, for the World Economic Forum web site, 2 June 2015.
- “The Case for Highly Enriched Uranium-Free Zones,” NTI Paper, co-authored with Miles Pomper and Andrew Bienjawski, 26 June 2015.
- “UNSCR 1540: Improving Capacity, Communication, and Civil Society Engagement,” 1540 Compass, Issue # 4, 2013.
- “Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Education. Recent Developments and the Way Forward,” CTBTO Spectrum, Issue 19, September 2012.
- US-Russian Partnership for Advancing a Nuclear Security Agenda. Recommendations for U.S.-Russian cooperation in strengthening nuclear security in the former Soviet states and Southeast Asia, co-editor and author, June 2012.
