Lieutenant General Robert G. Gard Jr., USA (Ret) is Chairman of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation where his policy work focuses on nuclear nonproliferation, missile defense, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, military policy, nuclear terrorism, and other national security issues.
During his military career, Gard saw combat in both the Korea and Vietnam wars, and served a three year tour in Germany. He also served as Executive Assistant to two secretaries of defense; the first Director of Human Resources Development for the U.S. Army; Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs; and President of National Defense University (NDU).
After retiring from the U.S. Army in 1981, after 31 years of distinguished service, Gard served for five years as director of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies Center in Bologna, Italy, and then as President of the Monterey Institute of International Studies from 1987 to 1998. Since 1998, he has been an active consultant in Washington, D.C., on national security issues, including the international campaign to ban anti-personnel land mines.
Gard has written for well-known journals and periodicals that focus on military and international affairs and lectured widely at U.S. and international universities and academic conferences. He serves on the board of eight non-profit organizations and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Gard holds a B.A. from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and both an M.P.A. and Ph.D. in Political Economy & Government from Harvard University.