NEW YORK, July 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — MSA Security (MSA), an industry leader in high consequence threat protection and specialized training, is pleased to announce the global expansion of its Research and Intelligence Analysis (RIA) Group with the addition of three internationally-based analysts. This team of seasoned analysts will provide regional threat perspectives and serve as on-the-ground assets for the program, expanding coverage deep into the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe.

This new international analyst team will work closely with MSA’s domestic RIA team, which is headquartered in New York City and comprised of highly experienced researchers, analysts and professionals from the Armed Forces intelligence community, the journalism field, academia, as well as the private sector.

“With the incorporation of the new analysts, the MSA RIA Group will be able to provide a more in-depth and insightful global perspective in its daily, all-hazards threat reporting and analysis,” said Erin Eizenstat, MSA Director, Research and Intelligence Analysis. “This enhanced, on-the-ground perspective will greatly expand the view of everyone involved, from our clients all the way through to our security professionals on staff.”

The new MSA analyst appointments include Ed Kley, a 30-year veteran of the US Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI); Christian Willach, a threat analysis consultant and reserve lieutenant colonel in the German Army; and Graham Clarke, a 32-year veteran of the Nottinghamshire, UK Police Service.

The expansion of the MSA RIA Group follows on the heels of the launch of MSA Worldview. Worldview is a suite of analytical products including a web-based news portal continuously updated by MSA analysts which provides a real-time view and analysis of the ever-changing security environment throughout the world.

“The addition of our international analyst team broadens the size and capacity of our intelligence analysis group and ensures the global reach necessary to provide the best, round-the-clock threat reporting and analysis,” added MSA President, Michael O’Neil. “The importance of these additions will be felt immediately across the board.”

About MSA International RIA Team:

Ed Kley is a 30 year veteran of the US AFOSI who retired as a lieutenant colonel. His Air Force career included assignments in Turkey, Spain and Iran, and he served as the AFOSI Director of Threat Analysis. He developed the AFOSI’s much heralded force protection daily, The Blue Line, in the late 1990s. He is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College, and has a Masters in Forensics from George Washington University and a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Tennessee.

Christian Willach is a threat analysis consultant and reserve lieutenant colonel in the German Army. He provided threat and policy briefs to members of the German Parliament, the German Ministry of Defense and European think tanks on strategy in Afghanistan. He served as the commander of a forward operating base in Kunduz Province, Afghanistan and deployed to Kosovo and Bosnia in support of international peacekeeping missions. He also worked in Afghanistan on behalf of the United Nations as a Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups Analyst, for the Afghanistan Non-Governmental Organization Safety Office, and as a political advisor for the European Union Special Representative. Willach has a Masters in Disaster Management from the University of Copenhagen, and graduated from the German Military General Staff Academy and Intelligence School.

Graham Clarke is a 32-year veteran of the Nottinghamshire, UK Police Service where he served as both the Head of the Special Branch (counterterrorism) and Head of Intelligence. He retired as a Detective Chief Inspector. He was the Head of Business Resilience and Security for E. on UK, and the Director of Group Security for Centrica, a British energy company. Clarke is a member of the City of London Crime Prevention Association, the Special Branch Security Liaison Group, and has diplomas in Advanced Criminal Investigations, Hostage Negotiation and Crisis Management.

About MSA Security:

Since 1987, MSA Security has served as an industry leader in high consequence threat protection and specialized training for corporate and government clients. The MSA team is comprised of security professionals with diverse backgrounds in law enforcement, elite military units and the private sector working together to provide unparalleled explosive detection, consulting, training and perimeter security services. MSA combines hands-on expertise with information and technology to minimize our client’s vulnerabilities to threats and lessen risks in order to protect their personnel and property.

SOURCE MSA Security