AGI
Jeffrey Rathke

Jeff Rathke

President of AGI

Jeffrey Rathke is the President of the American-German Institute at the Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC.

Prior to joining AGI, Jeff was a senior fellow and deputy director of the Europe Program at CSIS, where his work focused on transatlantic relations and U.S. security and defense policy. Jeff joined CSIS in 2015 from the State Department, after a 24-year career as a Foreign Service Officer, dedicated primarily to U.S. relations with Europe. He was director of the State Department Press Office from 2014 to 2015, briefing the State Department press corps and managing the Department’s engagement with U.S. print and electronic media. Jeff led the political section of the U.S. Embassy in Kuala Lumpur from 2011 to 2014. Prior to that, he was deputy chief of staff to the NATO Secretary General in Brussels. He also served in Berlin as minister-counselor for political affairs (2006–2009), his second tour of duty in Germany. His Washington assignments have included deputy director of the Office of European Security and Political Affairs and duty officer in the White House Situation Room and State Department Operations Center.

Mr. Rathke was a Weinberg Fellow at Princeton University (2003–2004), winning the Master’s in Public Policy Prize. He also served at U.S. Embassies in Dublin, Moscow, and Riga, which he helped open after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Mr. Rathke has been awarded national honors by Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as several State Department awards. He holds an M.P.P. degree from Princeton University and B.A. and B.S. degrees from Cornell University. He speaks German, Russian, and Latvian.

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jrathke@aicgs.org

Recent Content

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From “The Hub” at JHU: Angela Merkel receives Johns Hopkins honorary doctorate

On July 15, 2021, German Chancellor Angela Merkel received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters (honoris causa) from Johns Hopkins University. AGI President Jeff Rathke presented the closing remarks of …

AGI President Jeff Rathke Looks Back on Merkel’s Relationships with Four U.S. Presidents

AGI President Jeff Rathke spoke recently with the BBC about Angela Merkel’s relationships with presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joseph Biden during her nearly sixteen-year tenure …

AGI President Jeff Rathke Joins CNAS Podcast “Brussels Sprouts”

President of AGI Jeff Rathke was recently a guest on the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) podcast, “Brussels Sprouts.” Along with Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Jim Townsend, and Cathryn Clüver, …

AGI Experts Preview Merkel’s Visit to Washington

Securing a Transatlantic Legacy Jeff Rathke, President Chancellor Merkel makes her last official visit to Washington just weeks before the September 26 Bundestag election will punctuate her path-breaking career as …

Berlin and Washington Revive Their Defense Partnership

Will Germany’s Next Government Address its Defense Spending Dilemma? German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer visited Washington on June 30, developing Germany’s emerging role as one of the Biden administration’s most …

Episode 43: Living the American-German Relationship—A Conversation with Martin Richenhagen

On this episode of The Zeitgeist, our guest is Prof. Dr. Martin Richenhagen, Chairman of the AGI Board of Trustees and former CEO of the American agricultural machinery manufacturer AGCO …

Episode 42: A New Direction for Germany?

The German federal election campaign is heating up after Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) finally chose Armin Laschet as the bloc’s …

Annalena Baerbock: The Greens’ Ambitious Bet that Germans Want Change and Renewal

What might the Greens’ strength mean for the transatlantic relationship? A great start is just a start, and there are five months to go until Germany’s September 26 Bundestag election. …

Episode 41: Trade Talk with Soumaya Keynes—Biden’s Trade Policy, the Transatlantic Relationship, and the Next Chapter

On this episode of The Zeitgeist, AGI’s Jeff Rathke and Peter Rashish speak with Soumaya Keynes, trade and globalization editor at The Economist and co-host of the Trade Talks podcast, …

Episode 40: National Bellwethers for the German Federal Election?

The March 14 elections for state legislatures in the states of Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate kicked off an electoral marathon that will culminate in the September 26 German federal election, the …

Germany’s Election Year Enters New Gear

The CDU/CSU Struggles to Regain Traction Germany’s national election in September will produce a new chancellor, as Angela Merkel retires from public life. Her conservatives took a shellacking in two …

Episode 39: Revitalizing Transatlantic Power

President Joe Biden has made rebuilding the transatlantic partnership a focus of his administration after four years of frosty relations between Europe and the United States. One of the most …