Scribe Strategies and Advisors – the Voice of Governments

Scribe Strategies and Advisors is a Washington DC-based public relations and communications consultancy founded in 1992 by Joseph Szlavik. The firm advises governments, defense and aerospace clients, and financial and homeland-security accounts through a global consultant network. Updated September 2026 to reflect the firm's continued operation and recent policy work.

Overview

Scribe Strategies and Advisors is a Washington DC-based public relations and business-strategy consultancy operating at the intersection of government affairs, defense, and international policy since 1992. The firm's model is a distributed consultant network rather than a traditional single-office agency, with clients and consultants spanning four continents.

The client base runs across sovereign governments, defense and aerospace manufacturers, financial institutions, and homeland-security clients.

Leadership: Joseph Szlavik

Joseph Szlavik founded Scribe Strategies and Advisors in 1992. His background includes work at the White House on international policy during the George H.W. Bush administration, and subsequent work with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Customs Service. That governmental grounding shaped the firm's positioning as a bridge between sovereign clients and Washington policy processes. Szlavik continues to publish and appear in the press on international policy topics, including a recent paper on U.S. minerals policy and Fox News commentary on the same subject.

Andrew R. Koch — a former journalist and Washington Bureau Chief for Jane's Defence Weekly — heads the firm's Defense and Homeland Security consulting practice. The broader team includes Richard E. Sincere, Tim Letzkus, James Freeman, Phillip W. Allen, and David S. Dubroff, alongside a network of U.S. and international consultants.

Practice Areas

• Government affairs and sovereign representation — Scribe has represented multiple national governments in Washington, including engagements registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
• Aerospace and defense — historically, Scribe's aerospace and defense consultants contributed to more than $20 billion in sales across 23 countries for approximately 100 clients.
• Homeland security — led by Andrew R. Koch.
• Financial services and emerging markets — Wall Street and emerging-markets advisory alongside international policy work.
• International policy — sovereign engagement across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia.

Historical Client Example: The Burundi Engagement

In 2015, Scribe added the Republic of Burundi to its representation. The Embassy of Burundi in Washington DC engaged Scribe to arrange meetings for Alain-Aimé Nyamitwe, then Minister of External Relations and International Cooperation, during his June 2015 visit to Washington — an example of the sovereign-representation work that has run through the firm's history. The engagement was recorded with the Department of Justice under FARA.

Editor's Note

Current firm status, active FARA registrations, and current client engagements should be verified via the FARA public filings database maintained by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Key Takeaways

• Scribe Strategies and Advisors was founded in 1992 by Joseph Szlavik in Washington, DC.
• Operates a distributed consultant network across four continents rather than a single-office model.
• Core sectors: government affairs, aerospace and defense, homeland security, financial services, and international policy.
• Andrew R. Koch heads the Defense and Homeland Security practice.
• Registered under FARA for multiple sovereign representation engagements.
• Szlavik remains an active voice on international policy, including recent commentary on U.S. minerals policy.

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