Luke Coffey

Senior Fellow

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At A Glance:

Luke Coffey is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute. His work analyzes national security and foreign policy, with a focus on Europe, Eurasia, NATO, and transatlantic relations.

Biography

Luke Coffey is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute. His work at Hudson analyzes national security and foreign policy, with a focus on Europe, Eurasia, NATO, and transatlantic relations.

Mr. Coffey was previously director of the Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation from 2015 to 2022, in which role he oversaw and managed a team covering most of Heritage’s foreign policy and international affairs work. From 2012 to 2015, he was the Margaret Thatcher fellow at Heritage, focusing on relations between the United States and the United Kingdom and on the role of NATO and the European Union in transatlantic and Eurasian security.

Before joining Heritage, Mr. Coffey served at the UK Ministry of Defence as senior special adviser to then-British Defence Secretary Liam Fox. He was the first non-UK citizen appointed to this position by the prime minister to provide advice to senior British ministers. Among his duties was helping shape British defense policy in relation to transatlantic security, NATO, the Middle-East, and Afghanistan.

Mr. Coffey previously worked in the House of Commons as an adviser on defense and security issues for the Conservative Party. He helped develop and implement policy initiatives on security and defense matters, in particular drafting the defense section of the party’s 2010 election manifesto.

His work in British politics followed his service to the United States as a commissioned officer in the Army. He spent his entire time on active duty overseas and was stationed in Italy with the Army’s Southern European Task Force. In 2005, Mr. Coffey deployed to Afghanistan for a year and was awarded the Bronze Star.

Mr. Coffey’s commentary and analysis have been widely published and he has been interviewed on television and radio by prestigious media outlets in the US and overseas.

Mr. Coffey has testified before the US Congress on NATO, Arctic security, the war in Afghanistan, and US policy in the South Caucasus. He has provided written testimony to the UK’s House of Lords Committee on the Arctic. His research has been quoted in reports by the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee and the House of Lords Committee on the Arctic.

Mr. Coffey received a Master of Science degree in the politics and government of the European Union from the London School of Economics. He holds a BA in political science from the University of Missouri–St. Louis and studied African politics at the University of the Western Cape in South Africa.

An avid traveler, Mr. Coffey has lived on four continents and visited more than seventy countries. A native of Missouri, he and his family currently reside in Northern Virginia.

Events
10
March 2023
Past Event
Support for Ukraine’s Defense in the 118th Congress
Featured Speakers:
Luke Coffey
Representative Seth Moulton
An Ukrainian soldier is seen on the frontline, in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on January 29, 2023. Artillery systems are actively used in the Donetsk region, where the intense attacks took place as the Russia-Ukraine War continues for more than 11 months. Artillery batteries are also being used on the frontine, along with various heavy weapons such as warplanes, helicopters, tanks and armored vehicles. (Photo by Mustafa Ciftci/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
10
March 2023
Past Event
Support for Ukraine’s Defense in the 118th Congress

Hudson Senior Fellow Luke Coffey sits down with Congressman Seth Moulton to analyze key aspects of Ukraine’s fight against the invading Russian forces, including the last Congress’s investments in Ukraine and the future of support in the 118th Congress for Ukraine’s defense.

 

An Ukrainian soldier is seen on the frontline, in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on January 29, 2023. Artillery systems are actively used in the Donetsk region, where the intense attacks took place as the Russia-Ukraine War continues for more than 11 months. Artillery batteries are also being used on the frontine, along with various heavy weapons such as warplanes, helicopters, tanks and armored vehicles. (Photo by Mustafa Ciftci/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Luke Coffey
Representative Seth Moulton
24
February 2023
Past Event
Peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia? A Conversation with Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov
Featured Speakers:
Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov
Luke Coffey
Moderator:
Michael Doran
armenia azerbaijan russia
24
February 2023
Past Event
Peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia? A Conversation with Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov

Michael Doran hosts a discussion on peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan with Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov, the assistant to the first vice president of Azerbaijan, and Hudson Senior Fellow Luke Coffey.

armenia azerbaijan russia
Featured Speakers:
Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov
Luke Coffey
Moderator:
Michael Doran
23
February 2023
Past Event
The Iran-Russia Alliance
Featured Speakers:
Michael Doran
Luke Coffey
Can Kasapoğlu
Moderator:
Peter Rough
Paper planes hang in front of the Iranian Embassy during a protest against Iran's supply of drones to Russia in Kyiv, Ukraine, on October 18, 2022. (Metin Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
23
February 2023
Past Event
The Iran-Russia Alliance

Join Hudson for a discussion on the extent of the threat and how the United States should respond.

Paper planes hang in front of the Iranian Embassy during a protest against Iran's supply of drones to Russia in Kyiv, Ukraine, on October 18, 2022. (Metin Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Michael Doran
Luke Coffey
Can Kasapoğlu
Moderator:
Peter Rough
21
February 2023
Past Event
Keeping Ukraine on the Path to Victory
Featured Speakers:
John P. Walters
Minister Oleksii Reznikov
Ambassador Oksana Markarova
Mamuka Mamulashvili
Nolan Peterson
Paul Massaro
Melinda Haring
LTG (ret.) Ben Hodges
Maria Tomak
Bryan Clark
Moderator:
Peter Rough
Luke Coffey
A Ukrainian serviceman fires during a joint military training of armed forces, national guards, border guards and Security Service of Ukraine in Rivne region, near the border with Belarus, on February 11, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
21
February 2023
Past Event
Keeping Ukraine on the Path to Victory

Join Hudson Institute for a discussion on how the United States and its allies can continue their vital support for Ukraine with Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova, Commander of the Georgian Legion Mamuka Mamulashvili, former Commanding General of US Army Europe Ben Hodges, and other experts.

A Ukrainian serviceman fires during a joint military training of armed forces, national guards, border guards and Security Service of Ukraine in Rivne region, near the border with Belarus, on February 11, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
John P. Walters
Minister Oleksii Reznikov
Ambassador Oksana Markarova
Mamuka Mamulashvili
Nolan Peterson
Paul Massaro
Melinda Haring
LTG (ret.) Ben Hodges
Maria Tomak
Bryan Clark
Moderator:
Peter Rough
Luke Coffey
A U.S. Air Force security forces raven, assigned to the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, maintains security aboard a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III aircraft in support of the Afghanistan evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA), Afghanistan, Aug. 24, 2021. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Donald R. Allen)
Caption
A US Air Force security forces raven maintains security aboard a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III aircraft in support of the Afghanistan evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan on August 24, 2021. (US Air Force photo by Donald R. Allen)
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luke_coffey
Senior Fellow
Commentary
4 Min Read
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken signs a book of condolence after the earthquake disaster in Türkiye during his visit to the Turkish Embassy in Washington, DC, on February 10, 2023. (State Department photo by Freddie Everett)
Caption
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken signs a book of condolence after the earthquake in Türkiye during his visit to the Turkish Embassy in Washington, DC, on February 10, 2023. (State Department photo by Freddie Everett)
luke_coffey
luke_coffey
Senior Fellow
Commentary
3 Min Read
U.S. Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 312, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW), prepare F/A-18 Hornets to take off for flight from Łask Air Base, Poland, April 27, 2022. 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing units are deployed to enhance NATO's capabilities in Eastern Europe at the invitation of the host nation. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Adam Henke)
Caption
US Marines with Fighter Attack Squadron 312 prepare F/A-18 Hornets to take off for flight from Łask Air Base in Poland on April 27, 2022. (US Marine Corps photo by Adam Henke)
Default Expert Image
Senior Fellow
Commentary
5 Min Read