Anne Applebaum is an American-Polish journalist and historian known for her writing on geopolitics and the history of Central and Eastern Europe. Born on July 25, 1964, she has been a prominent commentator on issues such as the rise of authoritarianism, the decline of democracy, and the post-Cold War order. Applebaum's expertise in Soviet history and the region's continuing politics has led her to author several acclaimed books, including "Gulag: A History" which won the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Non-Fiction, providing a detailed history of the Soviet Union's forced labor camp system. Other notable works include "Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe, 1944–1956" and "Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine," both of which received critical acclaim for their meticulous research and insightful analysis. Applebaum's columns have appeared in high-profile publications such as The Washington Post and The Atlantic, and she is respected for her scholarly approach to journalism and her clear-eyed assessments of contemporary political challenges.