(Stockholm, 5 March 2025) The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute is pleased to announce the appointment of Karim Haggag as its new Director. Haggag will assume his post on 8 September 2025.
Karim Haggag currently serves as a Professor of Practice at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the American University in Cairo, where he lectures on arms control, international and regional security, the role of military force as an instrument of policy, and conflict management and resolution. He is also a non-resident fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Security at the Harvard Kennedy School and an adviser for the European Institute of Peace. He was formerly a resident distinguished fellow at the National Defense University in Washington, DC.
Haggag’s research and academic experience is complemented by a 25-year career in Egypt’s diplomatic corps, including more than a decade of service in Washington, DC. His diplomatic career focused on arms control and disarmament, global non-proliferation policy, regional and international security, the Arab-Israeli peace process, and counterterrorism. He also brings an extensive record of engagement in track-two processes, not only as a participant but also as a convener, facilitating sensitive dialogues with participants from across several geopolitical and conflict divides.
‘We are extremely pleased to welcome Karim Haggag to SIPRI and look forward to his leadership and inspiring ideas,’ said Stefan Löfven, Chair of SIPRI’s Governing Board. ‘We are confident that Karim Haggag possesses the ability, knowledge and vision to lead SIPRI towards its 60th anniversary and beyond.’
‘It is a profound honour to lead an internationally respected institution like SIPRI. At a time of global volatility and heightened risks, SIPRI’s role in providing trusted, independent data and evidence-based analysis is more important than ever. I very much look forward to working with SIPRI’s world-class team of researchers and staff to advance the mission of the Institute in formulating forward-looking policy approaches to address the many complex challenges facing today’s global security landscape,’ said Haggag.
Karim Haggag will replace current SIPRI Director Dan Smith, whose second five-year term expires in September.
‘In his decade as the Director of SIPRI, Dan Smith has broadened the scope of SIPRI’s research agenda, reflecting the peace and security implications of emerging technologies, socio-economic development and environmental change,’ said Stefan Löfven. ‘On behalf of the SIPRI Governing Board, I sincerely thank Dan Smith for his leadership and impact.’
For editors
Karim Haggag (Egypt) is SIPRI’s tenth Director since the Institute’s founding in 1966. He replaces Director Dan Smith, who has served in the role since 1 September 2015.
Media contacts
For information or interview requests contact Mimmi Shen (mimmi.shen@sipri.org, +46 76 628 61 33) or Stephanie Blenckner (blenckner@sipri.org, +46 8 655 97 47).