Victor Cha

Senior Vice President for Asia and Korea Chair
Victor Cha

Victor Cha joined the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, D.C., in May 2009. He is currently senior vice president for Asia and Korea Chair at CSIS. He is also vice dean and D.S. Song-KF Professor of Government in the School of Foreign Service and Department of Government at Georgetown University. He was appointed in 2021 by Biden administration to serve on the Defense Policy Board in an advisory role to the secretary of defense. He formerly served on the National Security Council from 2004 to 2007, where he was responsible primarily for Japan, the Korean peninsula, Australia/New Zealand, and Pacific Island nation affairs. Dr. Cha was also the deputy head of delegation for the United States at the Six Party Talks in Beijing and received two outstanding service commendations during his tenure at the NSC. He is the author of seven books, including the award-winning Alignment Despite Antagonism: The United States-Korea-Japan Security Triangle (Stanford University Press, 1999) (winner of the 2000 Ohira Book Prize), and The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future (Harper Collins Ecco, 2012) selected by Foreign Affairs as a “Best Book on the Asia-Pacific for 2012.” His most recent book is Powerplay: Origins of the American Alliance System in Asia (Princeton University Press, 2018). His next books are Korea: A Modern History, which will be published by Yale University Press in June 2023, and The Black Box and Dark Tunnel, which will bepublished by Columbia University Press in late 2023.

Dr. Cha is a two-time Fulbright scholar, former Olin fellow at Harvard, and former Hoover, CISAC, and Koret fellow at Stanford. He currently serves on 10 editorial boards of academic journals and is coeditor of the Contemporary Asia book series at Columbia University Press. In 2022, he was elected to serve on the board for the National Endowment for Democracy, and he remains a senior fellow in human freedom (non-resident) at the George W. Bush Institute in Dallas, Texas. He is also a foreign affairs contributor for MSNBC and NBC News. Dr. Cha received his PhD in political science at Columbia University, MIA from Columbia, BA Honors in philosophy, politics, and economics from Oxford University, and AB in economics from Columbia. 

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Why Korea Matters with Rep. Ami Bera

Join the CSIS Korea Chair for a Capital Cable event with Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) on the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-ROK alliance. 

Event by Ami Bera , Victor Cha , Mark Lippert , and Sue Mi Terry — July 27, 2023

Book Launch | Korea: A New History of South & North

Victor Cha and Ramon Pacheco Pardo draw on decades of research to explore the history of modern Korea to shed light on the evolving identities of the two Koreas, explaining the sharp differences between North and South, and prospects for unification.

Event by Victor Cha , Ramon Pacheco Pardo , and Christine J Kim — July 24, 2023

The U.S.-ROK Nuclear Consultative Group’s Successful Launching

The new Nuclear Consultative Group between the United States and South Korea this week is a significant event for lasting peace on the peninsula as it shored up extended nuclear deterrence commitments to South Korea and sent signals to North Korea of its capabilities.   

Commentary by Victor Cha — July 20, 2023

2023 NATO Summit: The Capital Cable #75

Join us for a discussion on the 2023 NATO Summit in Vilnius with Max Bergmann, Victor Cha, Mark Lippert and Sue Mi Terry. 

Event by Victor Cha , Mark Lippert , Sue Mi Terry , and Max Bergmann — July 13, 2023

The Impossible State

Can the Downward Spiral in China-Korea Relations be Stopped?

In this episode, Dr. Victor Cha and Andrew Schwartz are joined by Ms. Bonnie Glaser to discuss the relations between South Korea and China, the upcoming NATO summit in July, and the relationship between China and North Korea during the COVID lockdown.

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha , H. Andrew Schwartz , and Bonnie S. Glaser — July 3, 2023

CSIS The Impossible State North Korea

What is Next for North Korea?

Markus Garlauskas, former National Intelligence Officer (NIO) for North Korea on the National Intelligence Council from July 2014 to June 2020 joins us on the Capital Cable to talk about what North Korea will do next. 

Event by Markus Garlauskas , Victor Cha , Mark Lippert , and Sue Mi Terry — June 29, 2023

Punggye-ri Update: No Indications of Test Preparations

Recent satellite imagery of the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Facility shows minor activity at the main administration area and no new activity at the tunnels. However, preparations at Tunnel No. 3 are considered to have long been completed.

Commentary by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr. , Victor Cha , and Jennifer Jun — June 27, 2023