Ashley J Tellis, a renowned foreign policy scholar and defence strategist of Indian origin, has been arrested and charged with unlawfully retaining classified national defence information, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Tellis, 64, a senior fellow and Tata Chair for Strategic Affairs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, was taken into custody over the weekend following a federal investigation into his handling of restricted government material. Prosecutors allege that Tellis violated 18 USC 793(e), which prohibits unauthorised possession or retention of defence-related documents.
Investigators are also looking into allegations of Tellis removing classified documents from secure locations and meeting with Chinese officials.
US Attorney Lindsey Halligan announced the charges in a press release, stating that the alleged conduct posed “a grave risk to the safety and security of our citizens.”
If convicted, Tellis could face up to 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and forfeiture of the materials involved. The government emphasised that the complaint is an accusation and that Tellis remains presumed innocent until proven guilty.
A distinguished academic and policy practitioner, Tellis has long been regarded as one of Washington’s foremost experts on South Asian security and US-India relations. He has served in several influential roles within the US government, including as senior adviser to the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, where he played a key role in negotiating the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement.
He also served on the National Security Council as special assistant to President George W. Bush and senior director for strategic planning and Southwest Asia.
Before his government service, Tellis worked as a senior policy analyst and professor at the RAND Corporation. His extensive body of scholarly work includes books such as Striking Asymmetries: Nuclear Transitions in Southern Asia and Revising US Grand Strategy Toward China. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the International Institute for Strategic Studies, among other professional bodies.
According to reports in US media, investigators are also examining Tellis’s alleged interactions with Chinese officials during professional and academic exchanges. While there is no suggestion of espionage at this stage, prosecutors assert that his retention of classified materials breached federal security protocols.
