Shota Gvineria

Shota Gvineria has worked on various research projects related to defence, security and foreign affairs in various NATO and EU frameworks. Currently, he is leading NATO DEEP and PfPC efforts on developing the Resilience Reference Curricula and is a member of the Cyber Executive Academic Board of EU's European Security and Defence College. He worked as a Project Coordinator for the Swedish International Development Agency to improve the competitiveness of SMEs under the EU Association Agreement.  As a Senior Researcher, he participated in the Horizon 2020 new markets project, funded by the European Commission. In addition, Shota Gvineria was also a Project Manager for the US Department of State's project to track and refute disinformation in Georgia and served as a Project Coordinator for the Open Society Initiative for Europe on Europeanisation Beyond Process.

Shota's research interests include: Resilience; Hybrid warfare; information warfare; Cyber defence policy; Eastern flank; Black Sea security; Russia’s foreign and security policy.

Professional experience

Shota Gvineria has extensive professional experience in various roles related to defense, security, and international relations. He has been a Lecturer of Defense and Cyber at the Baltic Defense College since 2019 and a Non-resident Fellow at the Economic Policy Research Center since 2017. He has also been an Invited Lecturer at the University of Georgia since 2017 and at the NATO-Georgia Defense Institution Building School from 2016-2019.

From 2017-2018, Shota Gvineria was the Deputy Secretary of the National Security Council of Georgia, and from 2016-2017, he served as the Ambassador at Large for NATO & Security Policy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia. He was also the Foreign Policy Advisor to the Minister of Defense of Georgia from 2015-2016 and the Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands from 2010-2014. Additionally, he held various positions, from intern to Ambassador, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia from 2001-2014.

In addition to his professional experience, Shota Gvineria has also made significant contributions to academia. Since 2016, he has delivered study courses to various education and training institutions on topics related to his areas of expertise, including NATO, Russia's foreign and security policy, Black Sea security, hybrid warfare, information warfare, and cyber defense policy and strategy. He has also developed study courses on cyber defense policy and strategy at national and international levels, which have been listed in the catalog of the European Security and Defense College. Furthermore, Shota Gvineria regularly delivers lectures and training to a number of European, NATO, and partner educational institutions, which further demonstrates his dedication to advancing knowledge in his field.

Education

2014-2015 National Defense University, Washington DC, the US - Master’s degree in strategic security studies, International security affairs and combating terrorism

2004-2005 Diplomatic School of Madrid, Madrid, Spain - Master’s degree in International Relations, International Relations and Affairs

2000-2001  Georgian Technical University, Tbilisi, Georgia - Master’s degree in Public Administration

1996-2000  Georgian Technical University, Tbilisi, Georgia - Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration