International Institute for Strategic Studies
Arundel House, in Temple district of central London
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| Abbreviation | IISS |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1958 |
| Type | International relations think tank |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
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Director-General and Chief Executive
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John Chipman |
| Website | www |
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is a British research institute (or think tank) in the area of international affairs. Since 1997 its headquarters have been Arundel House, in London. The 2013 Global Go To Think Tank Index ranked IISS as the ninth best think tank worldwide.[1]
Overview
Founded in 1958, with its original focus nuclear deterrence and arms control, the IISS has strong establishment links, with former US and British government officials among its members. The institute claims that it "was hugely influential in setting the intellectual structures for managing the Cold War." The current Director-General and Chief Executive is Dr John Chipman CMG. The Chairman of the Council is Francois Heisbourg, a former Director. Sir Michael Howard, the British military historian, is President Emeritus. Sir Michael founded the institute together with the British Labour M.P. Denis Healey (Defence Secretary 1964–1970 and Chancellor of the Exchequer 1974–1979) and journalist Alastair Buchan.[2]
The IISS describes itself as a <templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />
primary source of accurate, objective information on international strategic issues for politicians and diplomats, foreign affairs analysts, international business, economists, the military, defence commentators, journalists, academics and the informed public. The Institute owes no allegiance to any government, or to any political or other organisation.
The Institute claims 2,500 Individual Members and 450 Corporate and Institutional Members from more than 100 countries.
The IISS publishes The Military Balance, an annual assessment of nations' military capabilities; the Armed Conflict Database; Survival, a journal on global politics and strategy; Strategic Survey, the annual review of world affairs; the Adelphi Papers series of monographs; and Strategic Comments, online analysis of topical issues in international affairs.
The Institute hosts the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual meeting of Asia-Pacific region Defense Ministers in Singapore, and the Manama Dialogue, an annual meeting of Persian Gulf-region security ministers and officials in Bahrain.
Based in London, the IISS is both a private company limited by guarantee in UK law and a registered charity.[3] It has branches in Washington, D.C. (IISS-US) and in Singapore (IISS-Asia), with charitable status in each jurisdiction, and in Manama, Bahrain (IISS-Middle East).
Criticism
Time magazine contended on 17 March 2004 that:
- Even such establishment voices as London's prestigious International Institute of Strategic Studies, which supported the Iraq war and hosted President Bush's during his recent state visit to Britain, concludes that the hostility sparked by the Iraq war has substantially increased the growth potential for jihadi terror groups."[4]
Directors
- Alastair Buchan (1958–1969)
- François Duchêne (1969–1974)
- Christoph Bertram (1974–1982)
- Robert J. O'Neill (1982–1987)
- François Heisbourg (1987–1992)
- Bo Huldt (1992–1993)
- John Chipman (1993 – )[5]
Council
Council members as of[update] 2015 are:[6]
- Professor François Heisbourg, Chairman of the IISS and of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy
- Carl Bildt
- Professor Eliot Cohen
- Marta Dassù, former Italian State Secretary for Foreign Affairs
- Fleur de Villiers, journalist
- Karl Eikenberry
- Field Marshal Lord Guthrie
- Dr István Gyarmati
- Professor Peter Ho, senior advisor to the Centre for Strategic Futures
- Ellen Laipson, president and CEO, Henry L Stimson Center
- Eric X. Li, founder and managing director, Chengwei Capital
- Dr Maleeha Lodhi
- Tadashi Maeda, senior managing director of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation
- Jean-Claude Mallet, Councillor of State (France)
- Moeletsi Mbeki
- Michael Rich
- Lord Robertson of Port Ellen
- Professor Ghassan Salamé
- Thomas Seaman, Fellow and Bursar, All Souls College, Oxford
- Grace Reksten Skaugen, chair of Norwegian Institute of Directors and deputy chair of Statoil
- Anne-Marie Slaughter
- Professor Sir Hew Strachan
- Major-General Amos Yadlin
- Igor Yurgens, chairman of the management board of the Institute of Contemporary Development
See also
- List of UK think tanks
- Adelphi Papers, the monograph series of the Institute
References
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- ↑ IISS Governance and Advisory Structure
- ↑ Why the Qaeda Threat is Growing, Time, 17 March 2004
- ↑ IISS, Dr John Chipman CMG
- ↑ The Council, IISS
External links
- International Institute for Strategic Studies (official website)
