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Laura Updegrove

Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia

 

Laura Updegrove is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia. In this role, she serves as the principal advisor to senior leadership within the Department of Defense on policy matters related to development and implementation of defense strategies and plans for the region. Her area of responsibility includes the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Bangladesh, Bhutan, the British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, South China Sea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. 

Ms. Updegrove has over 15 years of national security experience in government across the Department of Defense, White House, State Department and on Capitol Hill. Most recently, Ms. Updegrove served as the Senior Advisor to the Principal Deputy National Security Advisor to the President at the National Security Council. From 2021-2023, she served as the Chief of Staff to the Counselor to the Secretary of State, where she led a team charged with implementing key priorities for the Secretary, including in areas related to South and Southeast Asia. From 2017-2021, she served in the U.S. Senate as the Senior Foreign Policy Advisor and then Legislative Director for Senator Jeff Merkley, leading his legislative work as a member of both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Appropriations Subcommittee for State and Foreign Operations. 

Ms. Updegrove is returning to the Department of Defense after previously serving four years between the Middle East Policy Office and the former office of Acquisition, Technology and Logistics. She also had previous roles as a Special Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President and an Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State. 

Ms. Updegrove received her BA with honors in Global Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is the recipient of the Department of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service and the Department of State Superior Honor Award.

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