The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) has had long-standing engagement in South and Central Asia and the Asia-Pacific. USIP’s Asia Center, established in 2015, currently maintains country offices in Afghanistan, Burma and Pakistan, where staff work with local and international partners to encourage greater inclusivity, promote political and social participation, advance justice, support mechanisms for conflict resolution and reconciliation, counter violent extremism, and pilot, test, and learn from innovative approaches to address violent conflict. The Washington, D.C.-based China program is focused on China’s impact on peace and conflict dynamics globally, with a particular interest in the countries and conflict zones where USIP works. Through research, a range of publications, public and private events, and briefings to national and international policy makers, the Asia Center deepens understanding of peace and conflict dynamics and helps inform policies and strategies on how best to manage violent conflict.

Regional and Non-Priority Country Initiatives

The Asia Center also applies its research, analysis, and convening strengths toward better understanding of regional, bilateral, or cross-border drivers of conflict relevant to its four priority country programs. The Center has previously supported research and dialogue on various aspects of the India-Pakistan and Afghanistan-Pakistan relationships, the Korean peninsula, regional economic initiatives, issues related to natural resources, and common trends in extremism in Southeast Asia, among others.

Where needs, opportunities and resources permit, the Asia Center also seeks to help prevent, mitigate or resolve violent conflict through on-ground initiatives beyond the Center’s priority programs. For example, the Center currently has active projects in Sri Lanka and Kyrgyzstan. 

Current Projects

Southeast Asia in a World of Strategic Competition: An Essay Series

Southeast Asia in a World of Strategic Competition: An Essay Series

Great power rivalry between the United States and China is frequently described in bilateral terms, with regions of the world — including Southeast Asia — merely serving as arenas of competition. But this framing ignores the agency of third countries in managing the risks and opportunities presented by this competition. To explore these countries’ agency and the corresponding policy options, this USIP essays series includes contributions from 10 Southeast Asia-based experts. Each essay provides one country’s perspective on how the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) perceive and respond to strategic competition between the United States and China.

Conflict Analysis & PreventionGlobal Policy

USIP’s Work on Taiwan

USIP’s Work on Taiwan

Intensifying strategic competition has left U.S.-China ties at a historic low, and the resulting geopolitical tensions have turned Taiwan into a potential flashpoint for a military confrontation between the two great powers. Amid this complex diplomatic landscape, USIP is working to improve U.S. and Taiwanese officials’ decision-making during a potential crisis by convening “peace games” and “tabletop exercises”; to build a deeper understanding of China’s coercive strategies and capabilities; and to help policymakers develop strategies to deter Beijing from taking military action in the Taiwan Strait.

Conflict Analysis & PreventionGlobal Policy

Resolving Tensions Between South Korea and Japan: An Essay Series

Resolving Tensions Between South Korea and Japan: An Essay Series

South Korea and Japan normalized relations in 1965, but unresolved historical disputes continue to undermine genuine bilateral reconciliation and optimal diplomatic, security and economic cooperation. Past efforts, both between the two countries and trilaterally with the United States, to help improve relations have generally emphasized a “future-oriented” approach that focused on common security and economic interests.

Reconciliation

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Featured Publications

The Unsustainable Exploitation of Solomon Islands’ Natural Resources

The Unsustainable Exploitation of Solomon Islands’ Natural Resources

Thursday, November 30, 2023

By: Charley Piringi

The extractive industry in Solomon Islands serves as a crucial catalyst for economic growth and development, tapping into the nation's abundant natural resources like timber, minerals and fisheries for export — mainly to China. But despite its promise for economic prosperity, the extractive industry poses significant challenges, requiring careful management to ensure sustainability and minimize adverse effects on the environment and local communities.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

Conflict Analysis & PreventionEnvironment

U.S. Approach to COP28 Will Shape How it is Perceived in the Pacific

U.S. Approach to COP28 Will Shape How it is Perceived in the Pacific

Thursday, November 30, 2023

By: Gordon Peake, Ph.D.

Pacific Island nations will be attending the 2023 U.N. Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP28) in Dubai this week with their concerns well known. USIP’s Gordon Peake discussed what the island states will expect from the summit, how the U.S.-China strategic competition is playing out in the region and what more the United States can do to build support in the region.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

EnvironmentGlobal Policy

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