[1] Naumkin earned his PhD from Moscow State University in 1972, writing his dissertation on medieval Islamic theologian Abu Hamid al-Ghazali.

In 1984, Naumkin joined the Institute of Oriental Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences as head of the department of Arab countries.

In May 2009, Naumkin was made director of the Institute of Oriental Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Additionally, Naumkin is a professor in the faculty of World Politics at Moscow State University.

He is also the Editor-in-Chief of the “Vostok-ORIENS” Journal of the RAS and President of the Center for Strategic and Political Studies.