Victor Cha

Distinguished University Professor, D.S. Song-KF Chairholder, and Professor of Government in the Department of Government and School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University President, Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department and Korea Chair, CSIS

Professor Victor D. Cha is Distinguished University Professor at Georgetown University and President of the Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. He is the author of nine books, including the award-winning Alignment Despite Antagonism: The United States–Korea–Japan Security Triangle (Stanford University Press, 1999), which won the 2000 Ohira Book Prize, and The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future (Ecco, 2012), selected by Foreign Affairs as a “Best Book on the Asia-Pacific for 2012.” His book Korea: A New History of South and North (Yale University Press, 2023) has been translated into nine languages, including Bulgarian, Danish, Dutch, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Turkish, and Ukrainian. His other books are Nuclear North Korea: A Debate on Engagement Strategies (Columbia University Press, 2003); Beyond the Final Score: The Politics of Sport in Asia (Columbia University Press, 2009); Powerplay: Origins of the American Alliance System in Asia (Princeton University Press, 2018); The Black Box: Demystifying the Study of Korean Unification and North Korea (Columbia University Press, 2024); North Korea’s Sea-Based WMD Capability (Bloomsbury, 2025); and China’s Weaponization of Trade: Resistance through Collective Resilience (Columbia University Press, 2026). 

From 2021 to 2025 he was appointed by the Joseph R. Biden administration to serve on the Defense Policy Board in an advisory role to the Secretary of Defense. He formerly served on the White House National Security Council where he was responsible for Japan, Korea, Australia/New Zealand and Pacific Island nation affairs (2004-7). Dr. Cha was also the Deputy Head of Delegation for the United States at the Six Party Talks in Beijing.

Dr. Cha is a two-time Fulbright Scholar, former Olin Fellow at Harvard University, and former Hoover, CISAC, and Koret Fellow at Stanford University. He is the recipient of the 2023 Hubert H. Humphrey award from the American Political Science Association for notable public service by a political scientist. According to ScholarGPS (2025), Dr. Cha is the highest ranked, living political scientist with Korea expertise in the world based on publication record, citation count, and impact (h-index). He has appeared in a variety of news media including The Colbert Report, and a cameo role (as himself) in the film Red Dawn. He co-hosts The Impossible State podcast and The Capital Cable YouTube show.

Dr. Cha received his Ph.D. in political science, MIA, and BA from Columbia University. He also holds a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from Oxford University.