He is responsible for providing economic and risk analyses for several emerging market countries -- Turkey, Croatia, Slovenia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan -- as well as modeling and forecasting macroeconomic conditions for these countries. He obtained his bachelor's degree in international and Russian-area studies at American University, Washington, D.C., and his master's degree in International Commerce and Policy at George Mason University, US. He studied in both Russia and Turkey as part of the curriculum.