Andris Banka is a senior researcher at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Baltic Sea Region Research (IFZO) at the University of Greifswald in Germany. He specializes in Baltic security and transatlantic relations, and his scholarly work has been featured in leading peer-reviewed journals and digital platforms. Banka holds a PhD in Politics and International Relations from the University of Birmingham, UK, and has taught courses in international relations and politics in Germany, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.