Anna Thacker

Areas of Expertise

Russia & Ukraine

Focus Areas

Product Line

Map Series

Anna Thacker is a Russia Researcher on ISW’s Russia and Ukraine Team. Before coming to ISW, Anna interned with the US Department of State, where she focused on security developments in Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe and assessed their implications for regional dynamics to inform policy development. She also interned with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, DC–based research institute, where she focused on national security and foreign policy, with particular emphasis on Russian information operations tactics.

Anna is fluent in Russian and Ukrainian and has previously worked as an interpreter for the International Rescue Committee. Her professional and academic research interests focus on Eastern European security—particularly the Black Sea region—and its implications for broader international security. During her time at the State Department, Anna was recognized for her exceptional work supporting the Conflict and Stabilization Operations portfolio in Ukraine and Europe’s expansion portfolio.

Anna holds a Master of Arts in International Security from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government and is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. She also participated in a summer study abroad program at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus, where she examined the Eastern Mediterranean’s shifting geopolitical landscape and human security challenges through a combination of rigorous academic study and direct engagement with diplomats, policymakers, security officials, and civil society organizations.