WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Ben Cardin, D-Md., have announced the joint appointment of Kyle Parker as the Senate Staff Director for the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission).

“The U.S. Helsinki Commission continues to be a force for promoting basic human rights and fundamental freedoms,” Senator Wicker said. “Kyle Parker is an accomplished foreign affairs professional with 18 years of experience in directing policy and managing foreign affairs staff. His proven ability to navigate complex international policy problems and build consensus between divergent parties makes him uniquely suited to advance America’s best interests on a global stage. Kyle and I have enjoyed a close working relationship for a long time, and I have always respected his counsel on issues of great importance. I am confident he will lead the Commission with honor and distinction.”

“It is great to welcome Kyle back to the U.S. Helsinki Commission family. His years of public service and experience helping to advance our country’s bipartisan international leadership on democracy, human rights and good governance will be a strong asset to the Commission,” said Senator Cardin. “Along with Senator Wicker, I am proud that we will have someone with Kyle’s depth of knowledge of European issues and hands-on experience with Russia and anti-corruption measures at the helm of the U.S. Helsinki Commission at this critical moment. Combined with his strong legislative skills and proven successes, Kyle will be able to step into this new role ready from Day One.”

Kyle Parker will serve as an advisor to Senators Wicker and Cardin, Chairman and Senate Ranking Member of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, respectively.  He will manage a professional staff charged with monitoring compliance with the Helsinki Accords and advancing comprehensive security through the promotion of human rights and the rule of law as well as economic, environmental, and military cooperation across the 57 participating States of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The U.S. Helsinki Commission is a bipartisan, bicameral, Congressional-Executive branch agency comprised of nine members each from the Senate and House of Representatives, and one member each from the Departments of State, Defense, and Commerce.

“Working with Helsinki Commissioners to create the Magnitsky Act remains the highlight of my career. What began in 2009, as a long shot, is now a movement redefining human rights advocacy around the world, and it all started right here,” Parker said.

“I’m honored to have the confidence of Senators Wicker and Cardin and excited to be returning to the Commission at a time when its mandate is central to managing many of the security challenges facing the United States. The Commission’s staff of world-class experts has an institutional memory that is rare in this city of constant transition. A step removed from the partisan grind on Capitol Hill, the Commission has the space to think beyond the latest headlines and craft innovative solutions to difficult problems. Whether defending the principle of the territorial integrity of states in the face of Russia’s violent occupation of Ukraine, protecting the U.S. investment in peace in the Balkans, or using parliamentary diplomacy to combat the modern slave trade, the Helsinki Commission wields the transformative power of our values in the service of our national interests.”

Parker most recently served on the House Foreign Affairs Committee as Ranking Member Eliot Engel’s top expert overseeing U.S. foreign policy toward the 50 countries and three international organizations (NATO, OSCE and EU) covered by the Department of State’s Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs. From 2006 to 2014, Parker served as Policy Advisor for Eurasia at the U.S. Helsinki Commission. Appointed during the Chairmanship of U.S. Senator Sam Brownback, Parker directed hearings and investigations, developed legislation, and staffed Senators and Representatives from both parties. Prior to entering public service, Parker worked for the American Foreign Policy Council managing high-level political exchanges with post-Soviet states.