Cynthia Cook

Director, Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group and Senior Fellow, International Security Program
Cynthia Cook

Cynthia Cook is director of the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group and a senior fellow in the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Her research interests include defense acquisition policy and organization, the defense-industrial base, new technology development, and weapon systems production and sustainment. Dr. Cook is a member of the editorial board for the Defense Acquisition Research Journal and is an adjunct professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. From 1997 to 2021, Dr. Cook worked as a senior management scientist at RAND, where she oversaw, led, and worked on a wide range of studies for components across the U.S. Department of Defense, along with the Australian Department of Defense and the UK Ministry of Defense. Previously, Dr. Cook was a research specialist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, working on the Lean Aerospace Initiative. Before her graduate studies, Dr. Cook worked in New York as an investment banker, specializing in high-yield finance. She holds a PhD in sociology from Harvard University and a BS in management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

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Transatlantic Defense during Wartime

Transatlantic defense is at a key juncture as Russia's war in Ukraine has brought greater unity but also thrown into relief the challenges of producing military capability. The European Union and NATO have an opportunity to build on their strengths to address this crisis.

Report by Cynthia Cook Max Bergmann Mark F. Cancian Gregory Sanders Sissy Martinez Otto Svendsen and Nicholas Velazquez — September 5, 2023

Understanding China’s Gallium Sanctions

On July 3, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced that it would impose restrictions on the export of gallium, a key element within the Department of Defense’s supply chain. The United States and its allies and partners are well positioned to absorb China’s attempted blow.

Critical Questions by Alexander Holderness Nicholas Velazquez Henry H. Carroll and Cynthia Cook — July 7, 2023

Press Briefing: Previewing the NATO Summit in Vilnius

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) hosted a call-in press briefing on Thursday, June 29, at 11:00 a.m. EDT, to preview the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, taking place on July 11 and 12.

Event — June 29, 2023

Pausing Proliferation: Facing China's Military Engine Development

A panel discussion on Chinese military engine development between the Director of the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group (DIIG) at CSIS, Dr. Cynthia R. Cook, former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Brigadier General Dave Stilwell, and Director of The Defense Concepts Organization and former Specialist in Military Aviation at the Congressional Research Service, Mr. J.J. Gertler.

Event — April 18, 2023

Global Security Forum 2023: Transatlantic Defense

The 2023 Global Security Forum, the CSIS International Security Program’s flagship annual conference, took place on April 5, 2023. This year’s conference theme was transatlantic defense and featured a keynote address by Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Christopher W. Grady.

Event — April 5, 2023