About

Patricia M. Kim is a fellow at Brookings and holds a joint appointment to the John L. Thornton China Center and the Center for Asia Policy Studies. She is an expert on Chinese foreign policy, U.S.-China relations, and the politics and security of East Asia. At Brookings, she co-leads the Global China Project and the Brookings-CSIS Project on Advancing Collaboration in an Era of Strategic Competition.

Previously, Kim served as a senior China specialist at the U.S. Institute of Peace, where she directed a project on U.S.-China strategic stability and served as the principal investigator for a major report on China’s growing footprint in Africa and the Middle East. She was also a Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, International Security Program Research Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and postdoctoral fellow at the Princeton-Harvard China and the World Program at Princeton University.

Kim’s writing and analysis have been widely featured in prominent journals and media outlets such as Foreign Affairs, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. She frequently briefs U.S. government officials in her areas of expertise and has testified before the House Intelligence Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade.

Kim received her doctoral degree from the Department of Politics at Princeton University and her bachelor’s degree with highest distinction in political science and Asian studies from the University of California, Berkeley. She is fluent in Mandarin Chinese and Korean, and proficient in Japanese. Kim is a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Affiliations:

  • Council on Foreign Relations, term member
  • National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, member
  • Past Positions

    • Global Fellow, Woodrow Wilson Center
    • Senior Policy Analyst on China, United States Institute of Peace
    • Visiting Scholar, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
    • Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
    • Postdoctoral Fellow, Princeton-Harvard China and the World Program
    • Research Fellow, International Security Program, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School of Government
  • Education

    • Ph.D., Princeton University
    • B.A., University of California, Berkeley

Media and Appearances

Wall Street Journal May 27, 2024

[China, Japan, and South Korea] seem content on using their [trilateral summit] to signal the resumption of regular communications by committing to cooperation on common challenges. No..."

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The Guardian February 26, 2023

There is a bipartisan consensus on the fact that China poses a broad challenge to the United States across multiple domains. I don’t believe we have a clear consensus on the precise mix..."

Radio Free Asia February 12, 2023

There were expectations that early 2023 would be a window of opportunity for Washington and Beijing to get to work on building the guardrails for the relationship that both sides..."

The Hill February 8, 2023

The United States and China share a strong common interest in not going to war with each other and global stability, generally speaking. This gives them a reason to engage with each other.

Politico August 5, 2022

South Korea is currently juggling a number of competing interests. While the Yoon administration has vowed to enhance defense cooperation with the United States to deter the growing..."

Voice of America June 1, 2022

Beijing has long bristled at moves to strengthen the U.S.-(South Korea) alliance and South Korea’s efforts to plug into U.S.-led initiatives in the region… Chinese leaders have called..."

The National Interest January 23, 2022

While there’s some debate about the precise state of North Korea’s missile capabilities, including the new hypersonic missile it claims to have tested, what is clear is that North..."

Wall Street Journal January 18, 2022

Pyongyang is likely to continue to make choices driven chiefly by its own interests and strategic timetables. China has never been able to dictate North Korea’s actions.

Politico January 13, 2022

[China’s motivation is to avoid] a crisis in its neighborhood with the Winter Olympics around the corner and the 20th Party Congress coming up in the fall.

Foreign Policy November 14, 2021

While the Biden administration has been very successful thus far on the alliance-building front, we’ve yet to see the establishment of a sustainable working relationship with China,..."

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