Jana-Christina von Dessien is co-head of the International Law Programme at foraus. She studied International Relations, International Law and American Studies at the universities of Erlangen-Nuremberg and Kiel. After a project-related assignment with the German Marshall Fund of the United States, she became amember of the chair and doctoral candidate at the University of St. Gallen in 2019, focusing on theories of international relations, international security law and standards and legitimation in security policy decision-making processes. Her research focuses on the legitimation logic of the US government for targeted killings in contrast to or in addition to established principles of international humanitarian law.