Heino Klinck is the Founder and Principal of Klinck Global LLC which provides strategic advisory services to private sector clients. He is a global strategist and national security policy expert focused on the nexus of government and business interests in the United States, Asia, and Europe. His extensive experience includes 2+ decades abroad; leading global strategy efforts in a Fortune 100 company; serving as the senior East Asian policy official in the Pentagon; analytical and operational responsibilities in the intelligence community; and multiple diplomatic postings in Asia and Europe.
Heino is also a Senior Advisor to the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR); a Senior Associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS); a Consultant with the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA); an Adjunct International Defense Researcher at the RAND Corporation; and a member of the Reagan Institute Strategy Group (RISG).
His views on national security and other global issues are frequently sought after by university and think tank audiences worldwide as well as being cited in U.S. and international media outlets. Heino authored the chapter entitled “America’s Alliances and the China Challenge” in Confronting China: U.S. Defense Policy in an Era of Great Power Competition. As the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia (2019-21), Heino devised and implemented U.S. defense policy in 20+ countries and territories; advised the Secretary of Defense; represented the Department of Defense to the National Security Council; and led sensitive negotiations with foreign partners resulting in significant successes in policy adjustments, budget prioritizations, and collaborative actions.
Previously, Heino was responsible for international strategy and business development in a top 5 U.S. aerospace company. He was at the forefront of the first-ever foreign acquisition of a new C4I capability valued at ~$1 billion by a key European ally.
Colonel Klinck’s military career culminated as the Chief of Army International Affairs where he was a senior advisor on geo-political, foreign affairs, and international security cooperation issues to the Army’s leadership. He travelled globally with the Chief of Staff of the Army advising him on key political-military and security cooperation matters as well as led bilateral staff talks and counterpart consultations with partners and allies on every continent. Assigned to U.S. diplomatic missions in China for 7+ years, he was one of the longest serving Military Attachés at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing and Consulate-General in Hong Kong. His early Army assignments included leadership roles in armor, armored cavalry, and military intelligence units in Europe, the Middle East, and CONUS.
Heino holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees in International Relations from Boston University; an MBA in International Management from the University of London; Master of Science degrees from the University of Rome and the University of Milan; was awarded a Fellowship by Stanford University’s Asia-Pacific Research Center; and attended Beijing Capital Normal University.
