Nikolaos Tzifakis is Associate Professor of International Relations at the Department of Political Science and International Relations of the University of the Peloponnese and Research Associate at the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies in Brussels. He graduated in 1996 from the Department of Political Science and International Studies of the Panteion University in Athens. He was awarded an MA with distinction in International Relations and Strategic Studies in 1997 and a PhD in International Relations in 2002 from Lancaster University.

He has been post-doctorate research fellow at the Centre of Political Research and Documentation (KEPET) of the University of Crete and he has taught as visiting lecturer at the Department of Political Science and Public Administration of the University of Athens, the Department of Political Science of the University of Crete, the Department of Geography of the Harokopion University of Athens, the School of Humanities of the Hellenic Open University, the Hellenic National Defence College, and the National School for Public Administration and Local Government.

His research interests include contemporary Balkan politics, EU external relations, and International Relations theory. His recent publications include articles in peer-reviewed journals such as Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Conflict, Security & Development, Ethnopolitics, European Foreign Affairs Review, Global Society, International Journal, Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Perspectives on European Politics and Society, Problems of Post-Communism, Southeastern Europe, Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, and Voluntas. He has also published four monographs and five (co-)edited volumes and has authored several book chapters and conference papers.

In 2008, he was awarded the Marcel Cadieux Distinguished Writing Award for his co-authored article with Professor Asteris Huliaras in International Journal. He has been an external peer reviewer for international academic journals such as Security Dialogue, Security Studies, Millennium, Journal of International Relations and Development, Europe-Asia Studies, Mediterranean Politics, International Journal, Peacebuilding, Australian and New Zealand Journal of European Studies, Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, and Perspectives: Review of International Affairs.