The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Paul J. Angelo as the new Director for the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, effective June 21, 2022. He succeeds retired Army LTG Frederick S. Rudesheim, who served in the position from February 2018 until May 2022.

Dr. Angelo is a fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he researches migration, insecurity, and strategic competition in the Western Hemisphere. A Commander (select) in the US Navy Reserve, he has extensive professional experience in Latin America and the Caribbean and has served several tours with the Navy, including one as an instructor at the Naval Academy, where he holds a bachelor’s degree in political science with honors. Dr. Angelo also has a Master of Philosophy in Latin American studies with distinction from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar, and a PhD in politics from University College London. He is the author of a forthcoming book on US security assistance to Colombia and Mexico.

The mission of the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies is to develop and engage the Western Hemisphere’s community of defense and security professionals to seek mutually supportive approaches to common challenges, cultivate effective and sustainable institutional capacity, and promote a greater understanding of US regional policy.

The Department congratulates Dr. Angelo on his appointment as the next Director of the Perry Center. The Department also expresses its gratitude to retired LTG Rudesheim on his successful tenure at the Perry Center, for which he received the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service.