معرفی
Victor Cha serves as president of the Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department and Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He is also a distinguished university professor and professor of government at Georgetown University. From 2021 to 2025, he served on the Defense Policy Board in an advisory role to the Secretary of Defense under the Biden administration. Previously, from 2004 to 2007, he served on the National Security Council where he was responsible for Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific Island nations, and was the U.S. deputy head of delegation at the Six Party Talks.
Dr. Cha received his PhD, MIA, and BA from Columbia University and a BA with honors from Oxford University. His academic journey includes being a two-time Fulbright scholar and a former Olin fellow at Harvard University, as well as former Hoover, Stanford Center for International Security and Cooperation, and Koret fellow at Stanford University.
His research focuses on international relations with particular emphasis on Asian security, U.S.-Asia relations, Korean peninsula issues, and North Korea policy. Dr. Cha has authored nine books that explore the complex security dynamics in East Asia, including the award-winning 'Alignment Despite Antagonism: The United States–Korea–Japan Security Triangle' and 'The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future,' which was selected by Foreign Affairs as a 'Best Book on the Asia-Pacific for 2012.' His recent works include 'Korea: A New History of South and North' (2023), 'The Black Box: Demystifying the Study of Korean Unification and North Korea' (2024), and upcoming titles on North Korea's sea-based WMD capability and China's weaponization of trade. Analysis of his recent publications shows a consistent focus on Asian security architecture, U.S. alliance management in the Indo-Pacific, North Korean military capabilities, and the evolving economic-security nexus in the region.
Dr. Cha has received significant recognition for his scholarly contributions:
- The 2000 Ohira Book Prize for 'Alignment Despite Antagonism'
- Selection by Foreign Affairs as having written a 'Best Book on the Asia-Pacific for 2012'
- Two outstanding service commendations during his tenure at the National Security Council
- Recognition as a two-time Fulbright scholar
Dr. Cha actively contributes to academic discourse as a coeditor of the Contemporary Asia book series at Columbia University Press and serves on the editorial boards of ten academic journals. He also serves on the boards of the National Endowment for Democracy and the Korea Society and is a senior fellow at the George W. Bush Institute. His expertise is frequently sought by media outlets worldwide, with recent appearances and citations in major publications including CNBC, Bloomberg, Financial Times, and South China Morning Post. Dr. Cha's research has significant policy impact, particularly in the areas of U.S.-Korea relations and North Korean security policy.
