Toby Trister Gati is a senior international advisor in the Washington office of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P. Previously, Gati served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Russia, Ukraine and the Eurasian States at the National Security Council in the White House, where she helped develop and implement U.S. policy towards Russia. From November 1993 to May 1997, Ms. Gati provided the Secretary of State with information on key foreign policy questions as Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research. Gati’s primary expertise is in U.S.-Russian and U.S.-NIS relations, Russia’s economic and political ties with its neighbors, Central and Eastern Europe, and on the workings of international political and economic institutions. She received her B.A. from Pennsylvania State University and her M.A. from Columbia University in Russian language and literature. She also has an M.I.A. in international affairs and a Harriman Institute Certificate in Russian studies from Columbia University.