Dr. Victor E. Alessi
From 1999 until 2007, Dr. Victor E. Alessi was Chief Executive Officer of the United States Industry Coalition (USIC), an organization dedicated to facilitating the commercialization of technologies of the New Independent States (NIS)of the former Soviet Union through cooperation with its members. Previously, he was President of DynMeridian, a subsidiary of DynCorp, specializing in arms control, nonproliferation, and international security affairs. Before joining DynMeridian in early 1996, Dr. Alessi was the Executive Assistant to the Director, U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA). At ACDA he oversaw day-to-day operations, preparation of the Agency's budget, and its contribution to the National Performance Review. He resolved inter-bureau disputes, and advised the Director on all arms control and nonproliferation issues.
Dr. Alessi served as Director of the Office of Arms Control and Nonproliferation in the Department of Energy (DOE) prior to his work at ACDA. His duties included overseeing all DOE arms control and nonproliferation activities and, until 1993, he was responsible for developing and monitoring a $200M research and development (R&D) program that supported his office's responsibilities. This R&D program involved hundreds of scientists and engineers at DOE national laboratories, and covered the entire range of R&D from advanced concepts research extending the frontiers of science and technology to the development of systems based on existing technologies.
As senior DOE representative, Dr. Alessi participated in U.S. efforts that led to successful conclusion of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF), Conventional Forces in Europe, Threshold Test Ban, Peaceful Nuclear Explosions, Open Skies, Strategic Arms Reductions Talks (START) Treaties and the Chemical Weapons Convention. In this role, he was instrumental in implementing the U.S. unilateral nuclear initiative in 1991 and was a member of the U.S. delegation discussing nuclear disarmament with Russia and other states of the former Soviet Union. He was in charge of DOE's support to the U.N. Special Commission on Iraq, to the Nunn-Lugar Initiative, and represented DOE in discussions on the Comprehensive Test Ban (CTB) with the other nuclear weapons states before the CTB negotiations began in Geneva in 1994.
Dr. Alessi has been the U.S. board member to the International Science and Technology Center in Moscow since its founding. He is also the U.S. board member to the Science and Technology Center in Ukraine. He is also a board member of Thorium Power Ltd. He serves or has served on advisory boards of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and Brookhaven National Laboratory.
Before joining DOE in 1987, he was the Chief of the Strategic Affairs Division of ACDA. In that capacity, he was responsible for START, Anti-Satellite Arms Control, Defense and Space negotiations, and the Standing Consultative Commission (SCC). Also, he served on the SALT II, START, and INF delegations.
Dr. Alessi is a 1963 graduate of Fordham University, where he also earned a licentiate in Philosophy (Ph.L.) in 1964. He studied nuclear physics at Georgetown University, receiving his M.S. in 1968 and Ph.D. in 1969.
