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Douglas A. Ollivant is a Senior National Security Fellow with the New America Foundation.
A retired Army officer, his last assignment in government was as Director for Iraq at the National Security Council during both the Bush and Obama administrations. Ollivant recently spent one year in Afghanistan as the Senior Counterinsurgency Advisor to the Commander, Regional Command-East. He is now is the Senior Vice President of Mantid International, LLC, a global strategic consulting firm with offices in Washington, Beirut and Baghdad.
Prior to his posting at the White House, Ollivant served in Iraq as the Chief of Plans for Multi- National Division Baghdad in 2006-2007. During this time he led the planning team that designed the U.S. and coalition portion of Baghdad Security Plan, the main effort of what later became known as the "Surge." He spent an earlier Iraq tour in 2004-2005 in Baghdad, Najaf, and Fallujah. He also taught politics at the United States Military Academy at West Point for three years.
A graduate of Wheaton College, Ollivant holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Indiana University, and is a graduate of the U.S. Army's School of Advanced Military Studies. He is a frequent television commentator on defense and Middle East issues. A life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Political Science Association, he is also an Operating Advisor to Monument Capital Group. He is working on a book manuscript comparing the American involvement in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts.
