Fourteenth Class of Visiting Fellows Joins the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies at Brookings

Brookings President Strobe Talbott announced today that three new visiting fellows will join the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies (CNAPS) for its fall 2011 fellowship program. This group of CNAPS visiting fellows includes scholars from China, Japan, and Korea, who will be in residence at Brookings through December 16. The research theme for the 2011-2012 fellowship year is “organizing for national security decision-making.”

“This year’s group of CNAPS fellows is made up of rising thought leaders from three important nations in Northeast Asia, and each has an important perspective on regional and global affairs.” Talbott said. “I am pleased that they will be joining the Brookings community and am certain that they will make important contributions here in Washington as well as in their own countries in the years to come.”

CNAPS hosts two separate classes of fellows per academic year — one in the fall and another in the spring. The spring class regularly includes fellows from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Vietnam, and is in residence at Brookings from March to June; this year’s spring 2012 group will also include a fellow from Mongolia. The CNAPS fellowship program is now in its fourteenth year.

The fall term’s fellows are:

Sang-Yoon Ma is an associate professor in the School of International Studies at the Catholic University of Korea. His research interests are international politics of East Asia, Korean politics and foreign policy, relations between the United States and the Republic of Korea, U.S. foreign policy, and Cold War international history. While at Brookings, Dr. Ma will conduct research and write on “Global Vision and Local Realities: Reading and Leading South Korean Public Opinion on the ROK-U.S. Alliance.”

Yun Sun was previously a China analyst for the International Crisis Group’s Northeast Asia Project, based in Beijing. Her expertise is in Chinese domestic and foreign policy, and U.S.-China relations. For her CNAPS working paper, Ms. Sun will conduct research on “Organizing the Chinese Government for National Security Decision-Making: Challenges and Prospects.”

Yuka Uchida is the deputy chief editor at the Japan Arab Association. Previously she served as political secretary for (former) foreign minister of Japan, Seiji Maehara. Her background is in Japan’s foreign policy, especially in the Middle East, and she has spent the last 15 years as a professional staff member of the Democratic Party of Japan. During her time at CNAPS, Ms. Uchida will research “How Instability in Japan’s Leadership Affects Its Foreign and Defense Policies.”

Established in 1998, CNAPS promotes research, analysis and exchange and is designed to enhance policy development and understanding on the pressing political, security and economic issues facing Northeast Asia. The Visiting Fellows Program, the Center’s flagship initiative, offers mid-career fellowships that bring up to eight fellows each year from Northeast Asia to Brookings to conduct research and interact with the U.S. policymaking and academic communities. Under the direction of Brookings Senior Fellow Richard Bush, CNAPS also sponsors an array of policy-oriented seminars, discussions, and publications, including the Brookings Northeast Asia Commentary.