The Global Security Outlook
“Why has it become so hard to predict things?” asked Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference. He lamented that some of the smartest minds in the world failed to pre...
Mark V. Vlasic is a Senior Fellow and Adjunct Professor of Law & Public Policy at Georgetown University, a Senior Fellow at Massey College, a Senior Advisor to Techstars, and maintains a boutique law practice focused on international law, private diplomacy, human rights, hostage negotiations, cultural heritage, interfaith engagement, and strategic philanthropy. A former pro bono advisor to the Director-General of UNESCO on “blood antiquities” issues, he is an Executive Producer with CBS Studios and Propagate Content, as his international work inspired the lead character “Danny” on the action-adventure social impact series BLOOD & TREASURE on CBS, Paramount, and Amazon Prime. He is also an Executive Producer of ERASE THE NATION, a film about the destruction of cultural heritage, including religious heritage, in Ukraine.
As public sector specialist at the World Bank Group, Mark served as the first head of operations of the StAR Secretariat, a joint United Nations-World Bank presidential initiative to help developing countries recover stolen assets from past dictators.
Before joining the Bank, he served as a White House Fellow/special assistant to the Secretary of Defense and advisor to the President’s Special Envoy to Sudan, and was awarded the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service by Secretary Robert Gates.
Prior to his government service, Mark practiced law at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, and served on the Slobodan Milosevic and Srebrenica genocide prosecution trial teams at the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague. A member of the U.S. Delegation to the Pan Am 103 “Lockerbie” terrorist bombing trial in the Netherlands, he has taught the Iraqi judges that tried Saddam Hussein, served as Legal Advisor to the Clooney Foundation for Justice, provided commentary to BBC, CNN, FOX, CBS and NPR, and is published widely.
Mark studied business, theology and government at Georgetown University while on an Army ROTC scholarship, and received his Juris Doctorate, cum laude, from Georgetown Law Center. He holds Certificates in International Law from The Hague Academy of International Law, conducted post-doctorate research at Universiteit Leiden as a NAF-Fulbright Scholar to the Netherlands, and completed the World Economic Forum's executive leadership programs at Oxford and Harvard.
As a U.S. Army officer, he has been attached to Capitol Hill and the Defense Attaché Office at the U.S. Embassy in The Hague, and was awarded the Army Commendation Medal.
Knighted by both the Vatican and Ethiopian Crown, and commissioned a Kentucky Colonel, Mark is a Fellow with the U.N. Alliance of Civilizations, a member of the Bars of California, the District of Columbia, and the Supreme Court of the United States, and is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Named a Global Peace Fellow by the Public International Law & Policy Group and a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, Mark is a founding co-chair of the WEF YGL SDG Advisory Council and Chairman of the Los Angeles Police Department Leadership Advisory Board, and serves on the advisory boards of the U.S. Institute of Peace, Artemis Climate Partners, the Center on Sanctions & Illicit Finance and the Monuments Men Foundation for the Preservation of Art, and is an inaugural member of the WEF’s Faith in Action Advisory Board.
“Why has it become so hard to predict things?” asked Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference. He lamented that some of the smartest minds in the world failed to pre...
David Rothkopf, Chief Executive Officer and Editor of the Foreign Policy Group, USA, introduced the topic with the warning: “The only thing we know about this subject is that it will chan...
“The list of threats from a European context are all coming together,” said Robin Niblett, referring to challenges involving Russia, the Middle East, refugees, immigration, Brexit, terror...
“It is certain that we will see more and more missions, in many militaries, turned over to robots.” So began the Davos discussion on the future of warfare between world leaders and schola...
The Davos sceptic would be surprised to learn that a morning meeting on “purpose” was at capacity. Indeed, there is a palpable interest at this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting ...
Speaking from his position on the front lines of terrorism in Africa, Yemi Osinbajo, Vice-President of Nigeria observed that “the ability of terrorists to connect and interact quickly is ...
For as long as we have had conflicts, the theft and destruction of cultural property has been deployed as a tactic of war. But the international community is starting to act.
The first thing that hits you at a mass grave is not the sight of decomposing bodies, but the smell.