Dr. Mirwais Balkhi joined the Afghanistan Policy Lab at Princeton University in September 2024. He is also a fellow at the Wilson Center, Washington, D.C. He served as the Minister of Education of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan from 2018 to 2020. Dr. Balkhi holds a Ph.D. in International Relations with a specialization in West Asian Studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India. He has published numerous academic articles including the books "Saudi Arabia's Foreign Policy Towards Afghanistan: 1991-2014", "A Critique of Afghanistan’s Regional Integration", "American Nation-Building: A Comparison of Afghanistan and Iraq", "An Introduction to Regional Studies in International Relations", and "Afghanistan and the Region: A West Asian Perspective".

Additionally, Dr. Balkhi has edited and co-edited several books, including "Afghanistan After 2014", "How to Be an IR Expert?", "How You Became an IR Thinker?", and "What is the Main Issue in International Relations?".

Dr. Balkhi has lectured at several universities, including Georgetown University-Qatar, Kabul University, the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF), the University of Afghanistan (UofA), and Rana University. He is currently the Chief Editor of the Quarterly Journal of Diplomacy & International Studies.