Matt Sherman
Encyclopedia
Matt Sherman is a foreign policy analyst and lawyer who has served as a senior advisor to the State Department, the U.S. military and international and domestic corporations. He specializes in the political economy and commercial markets of the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia, providing cogent analysis of the regional political environment and identifying risks and opportunities for foreign investors. The insights he brings allow for a unique understanding of the interplay between politics and economics in these parts of the world and are grounded in his extensive operational experience.
He recently completed a 27 month tour in Afghanistan
with the Department of State. Since January 2010, he was a member of General Stanley McChrystal's and subsequently General David Petraeus
's Strategic Advisory Group. In 2009, Sherman was the Senior Civilian Representative in Logar and Wardak provinces. Sherman was presented the Department of State Award for Heroism by Secretary Hillary Clinton in November 2009 for assisting in the rescue of wounded American soldiers following an ambush in Afghanistan.
Sherman also served two extended tours in Iraq
. From December 2003 to January 2006, under the Coalition Provisional Authority
and later the Department of State, he was the personal advisor to four Iraqi Ministers of Interior and advised senior Iraqi and Coalition personnel on non-military security matters. From November 2006 until December 2007, Sherman worked as the political advisor to the First Cavalry Division, the military unit in charge of operations in Baghdad during the planning and implementation of the "surge".
While not assigned overseas, he works as a Principal with SCI Consulting, a Senior Advisor to the Scowcroft Group, and an adjunct with the RAND Corporation. Earlier, in a private capacity, Sherman worked as Director of Research for General Colin Powell
(Ret.) and his non-profit organization, America's Promise
. Trained as an attorney, Sherman practiced corporate law for the firm Drinker Biddle & Reath.
Sherman received his B.A and J.D. from the University of North Carolina
, and an M.Phil. in International Relations from Cambridge University. As a Fulbright Scholar, he worked with the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs on US - Australian trade regulations. Sherman is a contributor to the Opinion page of The New York Times
and The Washington Post
; and has provided foreign affairs' analysis to the News Hour with Jim Lehrer, Nightline, and NBC Nightly News, among others. Previous international assignments include appointments with the OSCE in Bosnia, Kosovo
, Croatia
, Montenegro
, Ukraine
and Moldova
as an election security planner and international monitor. A keen amateur photographer, Sherman's work has been displayed in the Guggenheim Museum and Guns n' Ammo magazine.
He recently completed a 27 month tour in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
with the Department of State. Since January 2010, he was a member of General Stanley McChrystal's and subsequently General David Petraeus
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus is the current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sworn in on September 6, 2011. Prior to his assuming the directorship of the CIA, Petraeus was a four-star general serving over 37 years in the United States Army. His last assignments in the Army were as commander...
's Strategic Advisory Group. In 2009, Sherman was the Senior Civilian Representative in Logar and Wardak provinces. Sherman was presented the Department of State Award for Heroism by Secretary Hillary Clinton in November 2009 for assisting in the rescue of wounded American soldiers following an ambush in Afghanistan.
Sherman also served two extended tours in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. From December 2003 to January 2006, under the Coalition Provisional Authority
Coalition Provisional Authority
The Coalition Provisional Authority was established as a transitional government following the invasion of Iraq by the United States and its allies, members of the Multi-National Force – Iraq which was formed to oust the government of Saddam Hussein in 2003...
and later the Department of State, he was the personal advisor to four Iraqi Ministers of Interior and advised senior Iraqi and Coalition personnel on non-military security matters. From November 2006 until December 2007, Sherman worked as the political advisor to the First Cavalry Division, the military unit in charge of operations in Baghdad during the planning and implementation of the "surge".
While not assigned overseas, he works as a Principal with SCI Consulting, a Senior Advisor to the Scowcroft Group, and an adjunct with the RAND Corporation. Earlier, in a private capacity, Sherman worked as Director of Research for General Colin Powell
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
(Ret.) and his non-profit organization, America's Promise
America's Promise
America's Promise — The Alliance for Youth is a foundation founded by Colin Powell in 1997 to help children and youth from all socioeconomic sectors in the United States.In late April 1997 Presidents Bill Clinton, George H. W...
. Trained as an attorney, Sherman practiced corporate law for the firm Drinker Biddle & Reath.
Sherman received his B.A and J.D. from the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
, and an M.Phil. in International Relations from Cambridge University. As a Fulbright Scholar, he worked with the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs on US - Australian trade regulations. Sherman is a contributor to the Opinion page of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
and The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
; and has provided foreign affairs' analysis to the News Hour with Jim Lehrer, Nightline, and NBC Nightly News, among others. Previous international assignments include appointments with the OSCE in Bosnia, Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
and Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
as an election security planner and international monitor. A keen amateur photographer, Sherman's work has been displayed in the Guggenheim Museum and Guns n' Ammo magazine.