Kenneth Handelman

Kenneth B. Handelman is an American government official who served as acting assistant secretary of defense for global strategic affairs and acting assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.
Education
Handelman earned a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in international affairs from Columbia University. He earned a Juris Doctor from Washington College of Law at American University.
From 1995 to 2013, he served a variety of roles in the United States Department of Defense. For three years, he was special assistant for programs and legislation to Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Walt Slocombe. He was named principal deputy assistant secretary for global strategic affairs in 2009, and served as acting assistant secretary of defense for global strategic affairs from 2010 to 2011. His main responsibilities included developing policies for countering weapons of mass destruction, overseeing the U.S. nuclear and ballistic missile defense force structure, and DoD space and cyber activities.
In 2013, he joined the United States Department of State as deputy assistant secretary of state for defense trade controls in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, where he oversaw the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) and provided policy guidance regarding the transfer of defense technologies to other countries through commercial defense trade.
He returned to The Pentagon in July 2015 and served as principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs. From January to July 2017, Handelman was the acting assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.
In July 2021, Handelman was reported by Foreign Policy to have served as acting assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs after the departure of David F. Helvey, the United States Department of Defense's top Asia official and served in that role until Ely Ratner was sworn in on July 25, 2021.

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