Guests of Groong Podcast
Want to be a guest on Groong? Send us an email!
Nino Skvortsova
Nino Skvortsova is a scholar who researches media studies, and regime transformation in the South Caucasus. Currently she is a post-graduate, PhD candidate, researching Regime transformation of Georgia. She has MA in Theory and History of International Relations from RUDN, the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, and has also studied Social Sciences at the Caucasus International University in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Pascal Lottaz
Dr. Pascal Lottaz is an associate professor of law at the University of Kyoto, in Japan. He specializes in the study of neutrality in international relations, Geopolitics in East Asia, European Politics, Nuclear Nonproliferation, and the study of the Second World War.
Paul Cormarie
Paul Cormarie is a policy analyst in RAND’s Washington D.C. office. His research focuses on NATO and European defense policy, force planning, and security cooperation. He is also a CSIS Nuclear Scholar where he is currently conducting research on European deterrence. Previously, Cormarie was a Researcher at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, where he wrote reports on the Alliance and in other topics related to European security. Prior to these roles, he has also been affiliated with CSIS, Atlantic Council, the EU Delegation to the United States, and the United Nations. Cormarie holds a M.Sc. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.
Philippe Raffi Kalfayan
Dr. Philippe Kalfayan is Legal Counsel and lecturer/researcher at the Paris Pantheon Assas Univ./Paris Human Rights Center. He is Assistant Judge HCR at the National Court for Asylum Rights. He served as secretary general of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and as Legal Expert for the Council of Europe’s Directorate General for Human Rights and Rule of Law. He has authored La France et l’Imprescriptibilité des Crimes Internationaux (Pedone 2015) and La Réparation des Préjudices en Lien avec les Crimes Historiques (TBR Pedone April 2026). He has been involved in institutional reforms and strategic projects in the Republic of Armenian for the last 30 years.
Pietro Shakarian
Dr. Pietro Shakarian is a historian of Russia and the Soviet Union. He is the author of the book Anastas Mikoyan: An Armenian Reformer in Khrushchev’s Kremlin. Dr. Shakarian’s analyses on Russian and post-Soviet affairs have appeared in The Nation, The Plain Dealer, and various other publications. He was previously a lecturer in history at the American University of Armenia in Yerevan.
Rafael Ishkhanyan
Rafael Ishkhanyan is a lawyer specializing in human rights, particularly freedom of assembly and expression. He coordinates the monitoring of peaceful assemblies at the Helsinki Committee of Armenia and is a member of the ODIHR Panel of Experts on Freedom of Assembly and Association. In 2023, together with colleagues, he co founded the Armenian Center for Political Rights, a watchdog organization focusing on detecting, responding to, and preventing political persecution and safeguarding political rights.
Robert Amsterdam
Robert Amsterdam is an international lawyer with over 40 years of experience in high-profile disputes across emerging markets. He is founding partner of Amsterdam & Partners LLP, based in London and Washington, D.C., known for innovative work in complex litigation, arbitration, and white-collar defense involving political and policy dimensions.
He has advised governments, corporations, and political leaders worldwide, including former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, former Zambian President Rupiah Banda, Ugandan MP Robert Kyagulanyi (Bobi Wine), Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu, Cameroonian politician Maurice Kamto, and others. He has also represented major corporations such as PricewaterhouseCoopers and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, specializing in “bet the company” cases and political risk.
Amsterdam & Partners has been recognized for its pro bono human rights work, winning the Global Pro Bono Dispute Award from the American Lawyer for its work in Zimbabwe, and representing opposition figures from Singapore to Venezuela. Amsterdam has also defended high-profile political prisoners, including Mikhail Khodorkovsky of Russia’s Yukos Oil and Venezuelan businessman Eligio Cedeño, both of whom were freed.
His commentary has appeared in the New York Times, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and Forbes, and he has been featured on CNN, BBC, CNBC, Bloomberg, and Fox News. Amsterdam is a member of the Canadian and International Bar Associations and a solicitor in the United Kingdom. He studied at Carleton University (BA) and Queen’s University in Ontario (LLB).
He currently represents Samvel Karapetyan, a prominent Armenian entrepreneur involved with the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Rouben Galichian
Rouben Galichian is an author and specialist of Armenia’s maps and borders through 2600 years of history. His works can be found on roubengalichian.com.