Learn more about the people, programs, and publications at the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs
“The contemporary world is characterized by global upheaval resulting from differences in culture, values, history, and evolution. International studies need to focus on the confluence of these trends, permitting the development of a grand strategy. The Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins SAIS will develop a multi-disciplinary approach to world order with special emphasis on historical and cultural evolution." Henry A. Kissinger
Generate new ideas
Through the research and writing of our distinguished faculty, fellows, and scholars
Train tomorrow’s leaders
Through innovative classes and curricula, the center seeks to revitalize the practice of diplomatic and military history and to examine the global order
Convene academics and practitioners
Through public and private programming which engages current leaders and new voices in their fields
OUR PEOPLE
We bring together distinguished scholars and practitioners in foreign policy and international security
Francis Gavin
Giovanni Agnelli Distinguished Professor, Director of the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs
Mary Sarotte
Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Distinguished Professor of Historical Studies, Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs
Featured News
To Run the World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power
What would it feel like To Run the World? The Soviet rulers spent the Cold War trying desperately to find out. In this panoramic new history of the conflict that defined the postwar era, Sergey Radchenko provides an unprecedented deep dive into the psychology of the Kremlin's decision-making. He reveals how the Soviet struggle with the United States and China reflected its irreconcilable ambitions as a self-proclaimed superpower and the leader of global revolution. This tension drove Soviet policies from Stalin's postwar scramble for territory to Khrushchev's reckless overseas adventurism and nuclear brinksmanship, Brezhnev's jockeying for influence in the third world, and Gorbachev's failed attempts to reinvent Moscow's claims to greatness. Perennial insecurities, delusions of grandeur, and desire for recognition propelled Moscow on a headlong quest for global power, with dire consequences and painful legacies that continue to shape our world.
Obtain your copy of the book hereRecent Event - Book Talk: Fareed Zakaria on World Order in Today’s “Age of Revolutions”
Book Talk: Fareed Zakaria on World Order in Today’s “Age of Revolutions”
Friday, October 4, 1:00 PM
Hopkins Bloomberg Center, Theater
What insights can we gain about our polarized and unstable world by examining the revolutions that define our era, both past and present?
The early 21st century, marked by populist anger, division, economic and technological disruptions, and global risks, may be one of the most revolutionary periods in modern history. But humanity has navigated similar upheavals before. In his new book Age of Revolutions: Progress & Backlash, 1600 to Present, CNN host and bestselling author Fareed Zakaria explores three historical eras with lessons for today—from the Dutch Republic’s 17th century Golden Age of prosperity and classical liberalism; to the French Revolution’s violent divisions into right and left; and the Industrial Revolution which propelled Britain and then America to global power.
The Kissinger Center hosted Fareed Zakaria as he discussed his newest book, "Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present." This event was open to community members of the Hopkins Bloomberg Center. You can find more details here.
Upcoming Event - AJI Postdoctoral Fellow Liliane Stadler on Swiss Good Offices in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1992
Upcoming Event - AJI Postdoctoral Fellow Liliane Stadler on Swiss Good Offices in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1992
Between Neutrality and Solidarity: Swiss Good Offices in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1992 is the first in-depth analysis of neutral Switzerland’s diplomatic engagement and mediation in Afghanistan after the Soviet invasion of 1979. Recently published in the Brill Series “New Perspectives on the Cold War,” it is a historical case study of the principal challenges that permanently neutral states face in times of international crisis and tension. It also examines the complex nature of the relationships between neutral state and non-state actors in situations of armed conflict through the perspective of recently declassified archival source material.
Join us in person or online for the book presentation of the volume, followed by a panel discussion with distinguished experts Elisabeth Leake, Lee E. Dirks Professor in Diplomatic History at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and Robert Rakove, Lecturer in International Relations at Stanford University. The panel will be chaired by Siniša Vuković of Johns Hopkins SAIS and co-hosted by the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs and the History and Public Policy Programme at the Wilson Center.
The book talk will take place at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, room 632 on Thursday, October 31 from 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM.
Register Virtual and In Person Attendance Here
Our Publications
Explore our latest scholarship
To Run The World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Dominance
What would it feel like To Run the World? The Soviet rulers spent the Cold War trying desperately to find out. In this panoramic new history of the conflict that defined the postwar era, Sergey Radchenko provides an unprecedented deep dive into the psychology of the Kremlin's decision-making. He reveals how the Soviet struggle with the United States and China reflected its irreconcilable ambitions as a self-proclaimed superpower and the leader of global revolution. This tension drove Soviet policies from Stalin's postwar scramble for territory to Khrushchev's reckless overseas adventurism and nuclear brinksmanship, Brezhnev's jockeying for influence in the third world, and Gorbachev's failed attempts to reinvent Moscow's claims to greatness. Perennial insecurities, delusions of grandeur, and desire for recognition propelled Moscow on a headlong quest for global power, with dire consequences and painful legacies that continue to shape our world.
War in Ukraine: Conflict, Strategy, and the Return of a Fractured World
In War in Ukraine, Hal Brands brings together an all-star cast of analysts to assess the conflict's origins, course, and implications and to offer their appraisals of one of the most geopolitically consequential crises of the early twenty-first century. Essays cover topics including the twists and turns of the war itself, the successes and failures of US strategy, the impact of sanctions, the future of Russia and its partnership with China, and more.
The Taming of Scarcity and the Problems of Plenty: Rethinking International Relations and American Grand Strategy in a New Era
In this Adelphi book, Francis J. Gavin argues that the institutions, practices, theories and policies that helped explain and largely tamed scarcity by generating massive prosperity, and which were sometimes used to justify punishing conquest, are often unsuitable for addressing the problems of plenty. Successful grand strategy in this new age of abundance requires new thinking. New conceptual lenses, innovative policies and processes, and transformed institutions will be essential for confronting and solving the problems of plenty, without undermining the expanding efforts against scarcity.
The New Makers of Modern Strategy
Professor Hal Brands edited The New Makers of Modern Strategy, is the next generation of the definitive work on strategy and the key figures who have shaped the theory and practice of war and statecraft throughout the centuries. Featuring new entries by world-class scholars, this new edition provides global, comparative perspectives on strategic thought from antiquity to today, surveying both classical and current themes of strategy while devoting greater attention to the Cold War and post-9/11 eras.
Danger Zone: The Coming Conflict with China
Professor Brands is joined by Professor Beckley of Tufts University in a "provocative and urgent" analysis of the U.S - China relationship and rivalry.
Featured Title: Not One Inch: America, Russia, and the Making of Post-Cold War Stalemate
In her newest book, Professor Mary Elise Sarotte explores the profound impact of NATO expansion on US-Russia relations since the Cold War, revealing missed opportunities and drawing on newly declassified documents and over 100 interviews.
The Twilight Struggle: What the Cold War Teaches Us about Great-Power Rivalry Today
America is entering an era of long-term great power competition with China and Russia. In this innovative and illuminating book, Hal Brands, a leading historian and former Pentagon adviser, argues that America should look to the history of the Cold War for lessons on how to succeed in great-power rivalry today.
Our Programs
Our programs and projects examine crucial topics in history, strategy, and statecraft
AJI is a four-university, transatlantic consortium, which in collaboration with the Axel and Margaret Ax:son Johnson Foundation for Public Benefit, will recruit, train, and mentor the next generation of historically-minded scholars and practitioners in statecraft, diplomacy, and strategy.
A project that creates a cohort of scholar-practitioners who understand the problems and perspectives of the world of academia and practice and can successfully pursue careers in both.
The overarching aim of this program is to deepen transatlantic relations by strengthening the Kissinger Center – and in it, the German/European perspective – in conducting research, providing teaching, and to inform and engage a wider audience in debates concerning the transatlantic relationship, international security, and the role of Germany and Europe in the future world order.
The America in the World Consortium aims to prepare the next generation to confront geopolitical challenges and understand American national interests abroad to participate in the debate about America’s role in the world.
Founding Donors
The Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs was made possible by the extraordinary leadership of Johns Hopkins University alumnus and former board chair Michael R. Bloomberg and by generous gifts from individual donors, corporations, and private foundations.