Peter Brookes

Senior Fellow

The Heritage Foundation

Peter Brookes develops and communicates Heritage’s stance on foreign policy and national security affairs through media appearances, research, published articles, congressional testimony and speaking engagements. 

He also serves as a Commissioner on the congressionally-mandated U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

In addition, Brookes is a columnist for the nation’s 5^th largest newspaper, the New York Post. His column also runs in several other domestic and foreign newspapers, and on numerous news and opinion-oriented websites.

 He is also a contributing editor for Armed Forces Journal magazine, writing a monthly column called “Flashpoint.” Brookes has over 300 published articles in over 50 newspapers, journals and magazines.

He is the author of: A Devil's Triangle: Terrorism, Weapons of Mass Destruction and Rogue States (Rowman & Littlefield: hardback 2005, paperback 2007).

Brookes has made nearly 1,000 appearances as a commentator on TV and radio, appearing on ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, NPR, BBC, CBC, VOA, Al Hurra, and Radio Free Asia, among others.  He has hosted major market talk radio programs and has been quoted by many of the world’s largest newspapers and magazines. 

He has testified numerous times before both the Senate and House of Representatives on foreign policy, defense and intelligence issues as a public official and as a private citizen. He is also a frequent public speaker both in the U.S. and overseas, making over 200 addresses, including public diplomacy speaking tours for the State Department in Japan, Germany, Australia, Poland, Ukraine, Fiji and Papua New Guinea.

Before coming to Heritage, Brookes served in the George W. Bush administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Affairs, where he was responsible for U .S. defense policy for 38 countries and 5 bilateral defense alliances. Prior to joining the Bush administration, he worked as a Professional Staff Member with the Committee on International Relations in the U.S. House of Representatives. He also served with the CIA’s Directorate of Operations. Prior to his CIA service, he worked for the State Department at the United Nations, and in the private sector in the defense industry.

Brookes is a decorated military veteran, having served on active duty with the U.S. Navy in Latin America, Asia, and Middle East in aviation and intelligence billets. Brookes has over 1300 flight hours aboard U.S. Navy EP-3 reconnaissance aircraft. Now a retired Navy Commander in the reserves, during his career he served with the NSA, DIA, Naval Intelligence, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Office of the Vice President, working as an intelligence analyst, strategic debriefer, Russian-language interpreter, defense attaché and associate professor at the Joint Military Intelligence College.

Brookes is currently pursuing a Doctorate at Georgetown University.  He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy (B.S., Engineering); the Defense Language Institute (Diploma, Russian); the Naval War College (Diploma); and the Johns Hopkins University (M.A., Government).

He has served in political positions at the local, state and national level, including being one of the drafters of the Republican National Committee’s 2000 foreign policy platform at the Philadelphia convention.  Brookes served with Bush campaign foreign policy and veteran’s advisory groups in 2004.

Brookes’ awards include: Navy League of NY’s Frank Knox Media Award, Joint Service Commendation Medal;  Navy Commendation Medal (3 awards); Navy Achievement Medal; several naval and joint unit awards; the Defense Language Institute's Kellogg Award; the Joint Chiefs of Staff service badge; and Naval Aviation Observer wings.