Institute of International Relations (Taiwan)

Institute of International Relations (Taiwan)
Name	Institute of International Relations
Native name	國立政治大學國際關係研究中心
Established	1949
Type	Research institute
Parent	National Chengchi University
City	Taipei
Country	Republic of China (Taiwan)

Contents

Institute of International Relations (Taiwan) is a research institute affiliated with National Chengchi University located in Taipei. The institute conducts scholarship on Cross-Strait relations, East Asian security, United States–China relations, and international law, and contributes to policy debates involving the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Republic of China), Legislative Yuan, and regional think tanks such as the Brookings Institution, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and RAND Corporation. Its faculty and fellows have backgrounds linked to institutions including Academia Sinica, Harvard University, Yale University, University of Oxford, and London School of Economics.

History

Founded in 1949 amid the postwar reorganization following the Chinese Civil War, the institute evolved alongside National Chengchi University during Taiwan's transition from the Taiwan Miracle era into a democratic polity shaped by the Tangwai movement and later the Democratic Progressive Party. Throughout the Cold War, scholars at the institute engaged with topics related to United States–Taiwan relations, Sino-Soviet split, and the Korean War, collaborating with figures connected to Chiang Kai-shek’s administration and later advising officials during the Lee Teng-hui and Chen Shui-bian administrations. In the post-Cold War period the institute expanded research on ASEAN dynamics, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, while maintaining links to experts from Tokyo University, Peking University, Fudan University, and University of Tokyo.

The institute's stated mission emphasizes empirical research and policy-relevant analysis of Cross-Strait relations, China–United States relations, East Asian security, international law, and global governance. Research clusters commonly address themes such as maritime disputes in the South China Sea, Taiwan Strait Crisis scenarios, economic statecraft linked to One Belt One Road, and normative questions raised by institutions like the World Trade Organization and the United Nations Security Council. Interdisciplinary projects often draw on scholarship from linked centers such as Institute of Political Science (Academia Sinica), Center for Northeast Asian Studies, and collaborations with scholars formerly at Stanford University, Columbia University, and Johns Hopkins University.

Organizationally the institute is housed within National Chengchi University and governed by an advisory board comprising academics and former officials from entities like the Ministry of National Defense (Republic of China), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Republic of China), and diplomatic missions including the American Institute in Taiwan and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United Kingdom. Directors and senior fellows have included alumni of Harvard Kennedy School, Princeton University, Georgetown University, and Australian National University, and the leadership rotates among specialists in international relations theory, security studies, and comparative politics. Internal units often mirror global counterparts such as the Council on Foreign Relations and the Asia Society, enabling exchange of governance models and joint programming.

The institute publishes working papers, policy briefs, and peer-reviewed articles, often appearing in journals associated with Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, and specialist titles alongside contributors from The National Interest, Foreign Affairs, and Journal of Contemporary China. Regular conferences attract participants from Ministry of Economic Affairs (Republic of China), International Crisis Group, EastWest Institute, and universities such as Seoul National University and Hong Kong University. Signature events include annual symposiums on Cross-Strait relations and workshops on regional security architecture that have featured speakers from United States Institute of Peace, European Council on Foreign Relations, and delegations representing ASEAN Secretariat and the European Union External Action Service.

The institute supports graduate seminars, internships, and certificate programs jointly administered with National Chengchi University’s College of International Affairs, offering coursework informed by faculty with ties to Johns Hopkins SAIS, Keio University, and Peking University HSBC Business School. Training modules emphasize practical skills for diplomatic service, including simulation exercises used by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Republic of China) and scenario planning inspired by methodologies from NATO and United Nations Institute for Training and Research. Scholarship programs have funded study at partner institutions like SOAS University of London, University of Melbourne, and McGill University.

The institute maintains formal and informal partnerships with research centers and universities across East Asia, North America, and Europe, including memoranda of understanding with Seoul National University, University of Tokyo, Peking University, Harvard University, Columbia University, London School of Economics, and think tanks such as the Lowy Institute, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Japan Institute of International Affairs. Joint projects address trilateral dialogues among United States, Japan, and Republic of Korea, cooperative mechanisms involving ASEAN and China, and transnational issues addressed in forums like the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the United Nations system. The institute also facilitates track-two diplomacy involving retired officials from Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Republic of China), former envoys to United States, Japan, and European Union missions, and scholars from Taiwan Foundation for Democracy and Sun Yat-sen School.

Category:Research institutes in Taiwan Category:National Chengchi University