Paul Edgar is the Interim Executive Director of the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin. He holds a PhD in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures from the University of Texas and studies the historical origins of diplomacy, war, and strategy in pre-classical antiquity.

Before entering academia, Paul served more than 22 years as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army. He deployed to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom I as the security advisor to Vice Admiral (Ret.) John Scott Redd in the Coalition Provisional Authority. Paul returned to Iraq during the 2006-2007 surge, and then deployed to Afghanistan in 2008-2009 for counterinsurgency and combat operations. Subsequently, he served as the executive assistant to the commander of the Kingdom of Jordan’s Special Operations Command; the battalion commander of 4th Battalion, 3rd Infantry in The Old Guard; and as the political advisor for Israeli affairs to the United States Security Coordinator in Jerusalem.

https://www.clementscenter.org/person/paul-edgar-2/