Mailing address
Taubman 162
Visions of Governance in the 21st Century Project
79 John F. Kennedy St.
Cambridge, MA, 02138
Joseph S. Nye
Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
Member of the Board, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Contact:
Telephone: (617) 495-1123
Fax: (617)-496-3337
Email: Joseph_Nye@harvard.edu
Experience
Joseph S. Nye, Jr. is Dean Emeritus of the Kennedy School, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations, and a member of the Belfer Center Board of Directors. He joined the Harvard Faculty in 1964 and has served as Director of the Center for International Affairs, Dillon Professor of International Affairs, and Associate Dean of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. From 1977 to 1979 he served as Deputy to the Undersecretary of State for Security Assistance, Science and Technology and chaired the National Security Council Group on Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons. In 1993 and 1994 he was chairman of the National Intelligence Council, which coordinates intelligence estimates for the President. In 1994 and 1995 he served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. In all three agencies, he received distinguished service awards.
Dr. Nye is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Academy of Diplomacy and a member of the Executive Committee on the Trilateral Commission. He has served as Director of the Aspen Strategy Group, Director of the Institute for East-West Security Studies, Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the American representative on the United Nations Advisory Committee on Disarmament Affairs, and a member of the Advisory Committee of the Institute of International Economics. Dr. Nye received his bachelor's degree summa cum laude from Princeton University in 1958. He was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University and earned a Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University. In addition to teaching at Harvard, Dr. Nye has also taught for brief periods in Geneva, Ottawa, and London. He has lived for extended periods in Europe, East Africa, and Central America.
AP Photo
September 2, 2008
"Guns and Gold of August"
Op-Ed, The Korea Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"...Military force is obviously a source of hard power, but the same resource can sometimes contribute to soft power behavior. The impressive job by the American military in providing humanitarian relief after the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 and the South Asian earthquake in 2005 helped restore America's attractiveness....By bombing, blockading, and occupying many parts of Georgia, delaying its withdrawal, parading blindfolded Georgian soldiers, and failing to protect Georgian citizens, Russia lost its claims to legitimacy and sowed fear and mistrust in much of the world...."
AP Photo
August 24, 2008
"Soft Power and Beijing Olympics"
Op-Ed, Real Clear World
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"The enrollment of foreign students in China has tripled from 36,000 to 110,000 over the past decade, and the number of foreign tourists has also increased dramatically to 17 million per year even before the Olympics. In addition, China has created some 200 Confucius Institutes around the world to teach its language and culture, and while the Voice of America was cutting its Chinese broadcasts from 19 to 14 hours a day, China Radio International was increasing its broadcasts in English to 24 hours a day.
But just as China’s economic and military power does not yet match that of the United States', China’s soft power still has a long way to go...."
August 13, 2008
"Climate of Security"
Op-Ed, The Korea Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"...Climate change will put stress on weak governments in poor countries and may lead to an increase in the number of failed states and become an indirect source of international conflict. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon argued in 2007 that the Darfur conflict 'began as an ecological crisis, arising in part from climate change.'
Such direct and indirect effects from human activity, while not malevolent in intention like terrorism, argue for a broadening of our concept of security and the adoption of new policies...."
AP Photo
July 15, 2008
"'08's Emotional IQ Tests"
Op-Ed, Los Angeles Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"You can't fake emotional intelligence, but it does require some of the same skill possessed by good actors. Ronald Reagan's screen experience served him well in this regard, and Roosevelt was a master "actor." Despite his pain and difficulty in moving because of polio, he maintained a smiling exterior and was careful about how he was photographed. Critics sometimes fault the Barack Obama or John McCain campaigns for trying to stage-manage their candidates' appearances, but this is nothing new. It has simply gotten much more difficult because unmanaged moments can so easily find their way to YouTube or the blogosphere...."
AP Photo
July 11, 2008
"Follow the Leader: We Must Go Beyond the 'Big Man' Approach"
Op-Ed, Globe and Mail
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"History is often written in terms of military heroes, but the enormous potential of human leadership ranges from Attila the Hun to Mother Teresa. Most everyday leaders remain unheralded. The role of heroic leadership in war leads to overemphasis of command and control and hard military power. In America today, the presidential debate is between Senator John McCain, a war hero, and Senator Barack Obama, a former community organizer.
The image of the warrior leader lingers in modern times. Writer Robert Kaplan points to the birth of a new "warrior class as cruel as ever and better armed," ranging from Russian Mafiosi and Latin American drug kingpins to terrorists who glorify violence just as ancient Greeks did in the sacking of Troy....Indeed, an oversimplified image of warrior-style leadership in President George W. Bush's first term caused costly setbacks for America's role in the world...."
July 11, 2008
"Joseph Nye on Smart Power in Iran-U.S. Relations"
Q&A
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations and Kayhan Barzegar, Research Fellow, Project on Managing the Atom/International Security Program
This interview elaborates on the applicability of Nye’s theory of “smart power” in the context of the Middle East and particularly Iran. The discussion further pushes the boundaries on how the current U.S policymakers should take into account soft and smart power towards Iran.
Nye: “… if the Americans, in efforts to try to stop the Iranian’s nuclear weapons program, were to bomb nuclear facilities in Iran, they might gain a few years of slowing down the nuclear weapons program but they would lose the whole generation of younger Iranians who would respond in a nationalistic way. So I think that would be a very large cost for a very limited benefit.”
July 3, 2008
"Joseph Nye on Smart Power"
Q&A
By Doug Gavel and Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
The days of American hegemony on the world stage appear to be waning. The rise of other global powers, the diffusion of economic and human capital, and the increasingly powerful influences being exerted by non-state actors — including terrorists — have ushered in a new era in geopolitics. Joseph Nye is university distinguished service professor and Sultan of Oman professor of international relations. He is the author of many books and articles on international relations, including his most recent book, “The Powers to Lead.”
July 2008
Project on National Security Reform - Preliminary Findings
Report
By Dr. Ashton B. Carter, Co-Director, Preventive Defense Project, Harvard & Stanford Universities, David M. Abshire, Norman R. Augustine, Ambassador Robert D. Blackwill, Dennis C. Blair, Charles G. Boyd, Daniel W. Christman, General Wesley K. Clark, Senior Advisor, Preventive Defense Project, Ruth A. David, Michele A. Flournoy, Former Research Fellow, International Security Program, 1989-1993, Leon Fuerth, Newt Gingrich, James R. Locher III, James M. Loy, Jessica Tuchman Mathews, John McLaughlin, Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations, Carlos Pascual, Amb. Thomas R. Pickering, General Brent Scowcroft, Jeffrey H. Smith, Dr. James B. Steinberg and Ken Weinstein
The Project on National Security Reform (PNSR) - a bipartisan, private-public partnership sponsored by the Center for the Study of the Presidency - has released its preliminary findings on needed changes in the national security system (covering both international and homeland security). PNSR's goal is approval of a new system early in the next administration. It envisions three sets of reforms: new presidential directives or executive orders, a new national security act, and amendments to Senate and House rules.
AP Photo
June 11, 2008
"Balancing Asia's Rivals"
Op-Ed, The Korea Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"...Bush leaves behind a better legacy in Asia. American relations with Japan and China remain strong, and he has greatly enhanced the United States' ties with India, the world's second most populous country....Improved relations between India and the U.S. can structure the international situation in a manner that encourages such an evolution in Chinese policy, whereas trying to isolate China would be a mistake.
Handled properly, the simultaneous rise of China and India could be good for all countries."
AP Photo
May 12, 2008
"Future of Japan-US Alliance"
Op-Ed, The Korea Times
By Joseph S. Nye, Sultan of Oman Professor of International Relations
"The U.S. regards a triangular Japan-China-U.S. relationship as the basis of stability in East Asia, and wants good relations between all three of its legs. But the triangle is not equilateral, because the U.S. is allied with Japan, and China need not become a threat to either country if they maintain that alliance....a wise policy combines realism with liberalism. By reinforcing their alliance, the U.S. and Japan can hedge against uncertainty while at the same time offering China integration into global institutions as a "responsible stakeholder."
