Natia Gamkrelidze

Natia Gamkrelidze is a postdoctoral fellow in the International Security Program at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center.

Her current research project, "Changing Geopolitics of the Black Sea: Intersection of Politics, Energy, and Trade," explores the evolving geopolitical dynamics of the Black Sea region following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine and its impacts on policy choices. The project focuses on political and military developments, energy security, and trade policies incorporating insights from interviews with top political, military, and industry figures. It aims to provide policy-relevant information for both political elites and private sector stakeholders, bridging the gap between academic research and real-world applications.

Natia earned a Ph.D. in Political Science from Linnaeus University, Sweden, and an M.A. in Political Science from Lund University, Sweden. She has held research positions as a fellow at the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University, a visiting scholar at the Harriman Institute at Columbia University, and a visiting Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Oxford. Her doctoral research examined political elite perceptions in foreign policy decision-making, drawing on 102 interviews with key political actors and emphasizing the role of elite perceptions in shaping foreign policy.

She has taught foreign policy analysis, international security, global politics, and European integration for five years at Linnaeus University. Her publications cover U.S., NATO, EU, and Russian foreign policy. Her research interests include international security, Western and Russian foreign policies toward the Black Sea region, West-Russia relations, and energy and trade pipelines in the Black Sea. Natia is a native speaker of Georgian, fluent in English and Russian, and also speaks Swedish.