Dr Monica Kello is a Lecturer in War Studies (Cyber Security) and Director of the Cyber Security Research Group in the Department of War Studies. Her research focuses on cyber strategy, international cyber conflict, and the security implications of new technologies.

She is a member of the Cyber Effects Network and a Trustee of Virtual Routes. Before joining the Department, she was Assistant Professor of International Security and Technology at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs at Leiden University and a researcher at The Hague Program on International Cyber Security, where she founded The Hague Threat Intelligence Exchange (Hague TIX). She also held research positions at the University of Oxford's Centre for Technology and Global Affairs and the Oxford Internet Institute.

Monica holds a DPhil (PhD) in Cyber Security from the University of Oxford, an MPhil in Geographical Research from the University of Cambridge, and a BSc in International Relations from the London School of Economics.

Research Interests

• Cyber strategy and cyber conflict
• Artificial intelligence
• Cognitive defence and national resilience
• International security
• Strategic studies

Selected Publications

• Monica Kello (2026). Fear of the (Un)known: How to Think About Risk and Threat Cultures in Cyber Conflict. Global Society, 40(4), 531–552.
• Monica Kello and Richard Harknett (2026). Friction and Initiative in Cyberspace Through the Doctrine of Cognitive Effect. In Jamie MacColl, Emma De Angelis, Pia Hüsch and Tim Stevens (eds), New Thinking on UK Cyber Effects: An Edited Collection. London: Royal United Services Institute, 49–64.
• Dennis Broeders, Arun Sukumar, Monica Kello, Lise H. Andersen (2025). Digital corporate autonomy: geo-economics and corporate agency in conflict and competition. Review of International Political Economy, 32(4).
• Arun Sukumar, Dennis Broeders, Monica Kello (2025). The pervasive informality of the international cybersecurity regime: Geopolitics, non-state actors and diplomacy. Contemporary Security Policy, 45(1).
• Dennis Broeders, Fabio Cristiano, Monica Kaminska (2023). “In Search of Digital Sovereignty and Strategic Autonomy: Normative Power Europe to the Test of its Geopolitical Ambitions,” Journal of Common Market Studies, vol. 61, no. 5: 1261-1280.
• Monica Kaminska (2021). “Restraint Under Conditions of Uncertainty: Why the United States Tolerates Cyber Attacks,” Journal of Cybersecurity, vol. 7, no.1.

Commentary pieces

• Monica Kello and Richard J. Harknett (2026). Towards a British Approach to Cyber Campaigning. RUSI Commentary, 10 February 2026. https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/towards-british-approach-cyber-campaigning
• Monica Kello (2025). Europe needs to invest in cognitive defence. Binding Hook, 29 July 2025. https://bindinghook.com/europe-needs-to-invest-in-cognitive-defence/
• Monica Kello (2024). Russia’s strategic culture drives its foreign hacking. Binding Hook, 15 January 2024. https://bindinghook.com/russias-strategic-culture-drives-its-foreign-hacking/