China Institute of International Studies (CIIS), think tank of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was founded in 1956 under the name of Institute of International Relations (IIR), and assumed the present name in December 1986. In 1998, China Center for International Affairs, formerly a research institution of China’s State Council, was incorporated into the CIIS. Prof. Qu Xing is the current President of the Institute.
CIIS conducts research and analysis, which focuses primarily on medium and long-term policy issues of strategic importance, particularly those concerning international politics and world economy. It also carries out researches and offers policy recommendations on major international events and hot-spot issues.
CIIS has constructed a world-wide scholarly and second-track exchange network, holding regular meetings with some foreign research institutions and running collaborative research projects with both domestic and foreign scholars on issues of shared interests.
CIIS currently has seven research departments, namely Department for International and Strategic Studies, Department for American Studies, Department for Asia-Pacific Security and Cooperation, Department for European Studies, Department for Developing Countries Studies, Department for European-Central Asian Studies, and Department for World Economy and Development. In addition, there are several Research Centers focusing respectively on the study of Sino-US Relations, Arms Control and International Security, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and etc.
International Studies is the Journal of CIIS. Its contributors include CIIS researchers and outside foreign affairs experts. The journal provides an influential forum for the discussion of important international issues and China’s foreign policy. It has an English edition for foreign readers.