WASHINGTON--The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars today announced the appointment of Dr. Shin Kawashima as a Wilson Center Japan Scholar. Kawashima will spend two months in residence at the Wilson Center, beginning in August 2009, working on a research project examining the diplomatic history of Taiwan as revealed through recently released official documents.

Kawashima is an associate professor of international relations at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Earlier in his career, Kawashima was an associate professor of law at Hokkaido University. Kawashima is the author of numerous articles in Japanese on the diplomatic history and foreign policy of Japan, China, and Taiwan, and has authored or co-edited a number of books, including War, Radio and Memory (Bensei Shuppansha, 2006), and Chugoku kindai gaiko no keisei (The Formation of Modern Chinese Diplomacy), (Nagoya University Press, 2008), which won the Suntory Academic Prize.

Kawashima's stay at the Wilson Center will allow him to work on a project examining how western nations outside the United States, Canada Britain and Japan have managed their relations with Taiwan. His research will also consider how eastern bloc nations approached the Taiwan issue during the period of Sino-Soviet rivalry, an area that has received little scholarly attention in the past. Kawashima's study will add fresh perspectives to studies on diplomacy with Taiwan, which have usually been viewed from the perspective of relations with Anglo-American or East Asian nations.

The Japan Scholar competition was established in 2008 to provide Japan's most eminent thinkers with opportunities to participate in international deliberations on current and future issues facing Japan through dialogue with global opinion leaders and policymakers, scholars, and other experts. The competition seeks to promote non-partisan scholarship and to encourage free, informed and serious dialogue on issues of public interest to Japan and the United States.

The Japan Scholar competition is a major aspect of the Wilson Center's new Japan initiative. The competition is open to Japanese citizens as well as current legal residents of Japan. Two scholars will be appointed each year. Applications are accepted from individuals in academia, business, journalism, government, law, and related professions. Candidates must be pursuing research on key public policy issues facing Japan, including U.S.-Japanese relations and East Asian political, security, and economic issues. For additional information on this scholarship opportunity, go to http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=news.item&news_id=470468.

This award is made possible through the generosity of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation.

The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars is the living national memorial to President Wilson established by Congress in 1968 and headquartered in Washington, D.C. The Center establishes and maintains a neutral forum for free, open, and informed dialogue. It is a nonpartisan institution, supported by public and private funds and engaged in the study of national and world affairs.