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Biden Administration International Affairs Personnel Tracker
David Cohen
Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
David Cohen is the Deputy Director and currently the Acting Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He also served as the Deputy Director of the CIA under the Obama administration between 2015-2017, succeeding Avril Haine, who’s the Director of National Intelligence under Biden. Before joining Lanley, Cohen served in the Department of Treasury first as the Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorist Financing between 2009-2011, then the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence between 2011-2015.
Before rejoining the CIA, Cohen was an adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center of a New American Security, focusing on intelligence, technology and national security, and economic statecraft. He was also a former partner at WilmerHale.
On China
Cohen’s view on China has not been made publicly over the past years. However, during his last term at the CIA, Cohen directed special projects on new technologies and how best to work with companies to advance the CIA’s mission. With the technological competition between China and the United States on the rise, Cohen’s work will continue to involve tackling the development of technology, especially those with national security significance. In July 2020, during a mock White House meeting, Cohen pointed out that the lack of separation between Chinese private entities and the state in the realm of emerging technologies, especially for the Chinese state-owned enterprises, makes it easy for China to gain access to U.S. technologies, which poses a moderate national security risk.
Notable Remarks, Event & Commentary
Page Last Updated: Febraury 16, 2021
*None of the personnel in this tracker are associated with the Institute for China-America Studies. All images used on this page are sourced from the official Biden-Harris transition website buildbackbetter.gov or the public domain.*
