Marilena Koppa is an Athens Law School graduate. She studied Political Science at Paris X- Nanterre University where she obtained a PhD on Comparative Politics (1991). For years she worked as a special adviser to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on issues pertaining to European Integration and Enlargement.

She is currently Assistant Professor of Comparative Politics at the Department of European, International and Area Studies of Panteion University of Athens and author of several articles and books on the Balkans, Minority Issues, Democratization, Nationalism and European politics, with a preference for comparative approaches.

She also served as President of the Institute of Strategic and Development Studies (ISTAME), Athens, from 2006 to 2007.

Marilena Koppa was a Member of the European Parliament from October 2007 to June 2014. She served as the Coordinator of the S&D Group of the Subcommittee on Security and Defense and was also the Vice-chairperson of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee. 

She speaks fluently French, English, Italian and can read Bulgarian and Serbian.