‘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.
Löfven also expressed confidence in Haggag’s expertise, vision, and ability to guide SIPRI as it approaches its 60th anniversary and beyond.
SIPRI, founded in 1966, is an independent institute specializing in conflict, arms control, and disarmament research.
Based in Stockholm, it provides open-source data, analysis, and recommendations to policymakers, researchers, and the public. It is widely regarded as a leading global think tank.
Karim Haggag
Haggag is a Professor of Practice at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the American University in Cairo.
He lectures on arms control, international and regional security, using military force as policy, and conflict management and resolution.
Haggag is 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.
"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," said Haggag, according to SIPRI website.
Haggag brings 25 years of experience in Egypt’s diplomatic corps to his new position.
From 2002 to 2007, Haggag served as Director of the Egyptian Press and Information Office in Washington, DC.
He contributed at the Office of the Presidency in Cairo, focusing on US-Egyptian relations and economic policy coordination.
From 1997 to 2002, he worked in the political section of the Egyptian embassy in Washington DC, focusing on politico-military affairs and matters related to the Middle East peace process.
He is an expert on arms control, disarmament, non-proliferation, security, the Arab-Israeli peace process, and counterterrorism.
Haggag will assume his role as SIPRI’s tenth director on 8 September 2025.
Short link: