General Motors appointed a former deputy director of intelligence at the Central Intelligence Agency to its board on Wednesday.

Jami Miscik is the chief executive and vice chair of Kissinger Associates, a political consulting firm founded by former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. She has held various top roles at the firm since 2009. Before that, she worked at Lehman Brothers and Barclays.

"Jami is a seasoned leader with experience in assessing the geopolitical and macroeconomic climate," said GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra in a news release. "Her unique and extensive background in intelligence, security and risk analysis and mitigation will add significant insights to GM's board and the company's overall strategy."

Miscik is also on the board of Morgan Stanley and is the co-vice chair of the Council on Foreign Relations, a think tank.

GM's shares are down more than 21 percent since the beginning of the year, and hit a new 52-week low in trading Wednesday of $32.12. Like some other automakers, GM has been hit in recent months with higher costs and a difficult international environment due in part to an ongoing trade war between the United States and China, which is an important market for GM.

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