Kristīne Rudzīte-Stejskala is the Team Leader for Defence Innovation at the European Commission’s Directorate for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS). The DG DEFIS Directorate for Defence Industry is responsible for strengthening the competitiveness and innovation of the European defence industry by ensuring the development of a robust European defence technological and industrial base.
Kristīne joined the European Commission in 2022, bringing with her seventeen years of experience in the defence sector. Her previous roles include serving as a Counsellor for NATO Resource Policy and Planning, Resilience, and Innovation Policy at Latvia’s Permanent Delegation to NATO. She has also held several leadership positions at the Latvian Ministry of Defence, most notably as Deputy National Armament Director and Member of the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) Board of Directors from 2015 to 2021. Kristīne holds an MSc in Politics in the World Economy from the London School of Economics and has published on defence and security topics.