Aspen Bilal Promoted To Junior Research Fellow At NAVI

We are delighted to share that Aspen Bilal has officially transitioned into the position of Junior Research Fellow following a successful internship. Please join us in extending our congratulations to Aspen on this significant milestone.

Aspen Bilal – Junior Research Fellow at NAVI

Aspen holds a B.A. in Politics and International Affairs from Lenoir-Rhyne University and an M.A. in International Studies from North Carolina State University, where she concentrated in Security Studies. Her academic and research interests focus on U.S.-China security relations, Chinese foreign and security policy, and the strategic implications of great-power competition in the Indo-Pacific, with particular attention to the South China Sea. She also studied abroad in Japan, where her study of Japanese history provided a historical foundation for examining contemporary security relations among China, Japan, and the United States. She currently works in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Duke University.

At NAVI, Aspen’s research examines how China’s growing regional and military influence intersects with NATO and the broader transatlantic security environment. She is the author of China–Japan–South Korea Security Dynamics: Implications for NATO Decision-Making in the Indo-Pacific, which examines East Asian security dynamics and their implications for NATO engagement and decision-making in the region, and 2027, which analyzes China’s military modernization, Taiwan, and the importance of distinguishing military capability from strategic intent when assessing the implications for NATO strategy.

NAVI Research Institute

The NAVI Research Institute is the research division of NATO Veterans Initiative - NAVI that provides a unique perspective to transatlantic leaders and societies on peace and security through the lens of NATO's founding principles of rule of law, democracy, human rights, and individual liberties. The NAVI Research Institute was officially established by the NAVI Board on July 16th, 2023.