Julian Simcock

Institution: Formerly, White House National Security Council

Period of stay: 28 April 2025 - 2 April 2026

Contact: tbc

Profile: 

Most recently, Julian held multiple roles at the White House National Security Council during the Biden Administration, including Director for Global Criminal Justice and interim head of the Multilateral Affairs and Democracy and Human Rights Directorates.  During his time at the White House, Julian coordinated the U.S. response at the United Nations to Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine.  

Previously, Julian served as the Deputy Legal Adviser to UN Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield and held multiple positions at the State Department, including as one of three members of the U.S. delegation to the South Sudan peace talks that led to the 2017 Cessation of Hostilities Agreement.  

He received his J.D. from Stanford Law School, M.P.A. from Harvard Kennedy School, M. Phil. from the University of Cape Town, where he was a Fulbright Scholar, and B.S. from Babson College.  Separate from his diplomatic career, he is an advisor and early stage investor in numerous software companies.  After law school, he clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  His writing has appeared in The Atlantic and The Stanford Law Review.
 

Research Area:

UN Negotiations, Criminal Justice, Ceasefires, Atrocities

Research Title:

Contemporary Multilateralism, UN Resolutions & AI 

Research Outline:

Contemporary Multilateralism:  How to balance regional and bilateral arrangements with support for broader international institutions is a central issue facing UN Member States.  What issues are right for global fora, and which, given Security Council inaction, are better suited for localized arrangements? Where can policy at the UN better reinforce regional and bilateral efforts, and where might it come at the expense of such efforts?  

UN AI Resolutions Project:  A new UN search capability, powered by the latest developments in artificial intelligence, would be a significant breakthrough for diplomats. This project aims to develop a gold standard search tool, built for UN delegations, academics, journalists, and all members of the public with an interest in the work of the United Nations.

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