Dr. Gawdat Bahgat is professor of National Security Affairs at the National Defense University’s Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Study. He is an Egyptian-born specialist in Middle Eastern policy, particularly Egypt, Iran, and the Gulf region. His areas of expertise include energy security, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, counter-terrorism, Arab-Israeli conflict, North Africa, and American foreign policy in the Middle East. Bahgat’s career blends scholarship with national security practicing. Before joining NESA in December 2009, he taught at different universities. He has published eight books including “Energy Security” (2011), “International Political Economy” (2010), “Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in the Middle East” (2007), “Israel and the Persian Gulf” (2006), and “American Oil Diplomacy” (2003). His work has been translated to several foreign languages.