Lucas F. Hellemeier
I received my Ph.D. in political science at the John F. Kennedy Institute at Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. I successfully defended my dissertation, The Political Economy of European Defense: Markets, Missiles, and the Pursuit of Autonomy, in April 2025.
My research focuses on the political economy of security and defense. In my Ph.D. thesis, I analyze European missile acquisition under the conditions of US hegemony in the defense market. I have published in peer-reviewed journals such as a short version of my MA thesis on European fighter aircraft procurement and on the politics of defense procurement in an alliance setting. Additionally, I have published analyses and commentaries in newspapers, in leading defense industry magazines, and, most recently, in War on the Rocks.
I am currently working as a consultant in the Public Sector Defence & Space division at KPMG Germany, where I have been employed since January 2025. Previously, I gained consulting experience at the Brunswick Group, where I supported clients from the defense industry in strategic communications. I assisted the analysts at the Federation of German Security and Defense Industries (BDSV) as a working student. My hands-on experience also includes internships at the German Ministry of Defense and the parliamentary office of Thomas Hitschler (SPD, member of the Bundestag). While no longer working as an academic, I still teach courses on the role of armaments in international politics at the JFK Institute at Freie Universität Berlin.
Fellowships and Awards
2025: Dissertation Award ‘Aquila Ascendens’ (1st Place), German Dialogue Forum on Security Policy
2024: Fulbright Visiting Researcher, Pardee School of Global Studies, Boston University
2023-2024: Research Fellow, Hertie School of Governance International Security Centre
2022-2023: Hans J. Morgenthau Fellow, University of Notre Dame International Security Center
2021: MA Thesis Award ‘Aquila Ascendens’ (3rd Place), German Dialogue Forum on Security Policy
2020: Ph.D. Scholarship, Graduate School of North American Studies, John F. Kennedy Institute, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany
2013-2019: Undergraduate & Graduate Studies Scholarship, Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES)
