Rifaat Hussain (; 1 April 1952 – 7 March 2025) was a Pakistani political scientist, defence analyst and television personality whose career spanned over four decades. He was professor and consultant in the Department of Government Policy and Public Administration at Pakistan's

National University of Sciences and Technology The National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST) () is a Pakistani multi-campus public research university with its main campus in Islamabad, and other campuses in Rawalpindi, Risalpur, Quetta and Karachi. It offers degrees in multiple ...

Life and career

Hussain earned his M.A. and Ph.D. from The

Josef Korbel School of International Studies The Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver is a professional school of international affairs offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees. It is named in honor of the founding dean, Josef Korbel, father ...

at the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

, United States. From 2005 to 2008, he served as the executive director of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS), a Colombo-based think tank in Sri Lanka, and spent two terms as visiting professor at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

’s

Center for International Security and Cooperation Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentri ...

(CISAC).

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. The magazi ...

described Hussain as a "leading Pakistani foreign policy thinker." Hussain's work appeared in

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

, and his foreign policy views have been quoted by

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician a ...

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

TIME Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

, and

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

. Both The Economist and the BBC interviewed Hussain on issues pertaining to South Asian security, including the Kashmir conflict, U.S. involvement in Afghanistan, Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts, NATO and India-Pakistan engagement. The

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) is a nonpartisan international affairs think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C., with operations in Europe, South Asia, East Asia, and the Middle East, as well as the United States. Foun ...

The Stimson Center The Stimson Center is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank that analyzes issues related to global peace. It is named after the American lawyer and politician Henry L. Stimson. Stimson analyzes issues such as nuclear proliferation, arms traffick ...

and The Atlantic Council cite Hussain's insights as part of their published compilations and reports. Hussain held associations with

Quaid-i-Azam University Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), founded as the University of Islamabad, is a public research university in Islamabad, Pakistan. Founded as the University of Islamabad in 1967, it was initially dedicated to postgraduate study, but later expande ...

for 36 years, and also headed the Department of Government Policy and Public Administration at the

, a top-ranked public research university in Pakistan. He was one of 18 members on the Advisory Committee on Foreign Affairs during Imran Khan's government. Hussain died on 7 March 2025, at the age of 72.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hussain, Rifaat 1952 births 2025 deaths Pakistani political scientists Josef Korbel School of International Studies people Academic staff of the National University of Sciences & Technology Pakistani television personalities