Alastair Iain Johnston, formerly Loeb associate professor of government, has been granted tenure in the government department.
Johnson's research and teaching focuses on East Asian foreign policy and China in particular, including work on China's compliance with international regimes and Chinese conflict management behavior.
He is the author of one book and numerous articles and papers on Chinese international relations.
Johnston's colleagues this week said his work on East Asian foreign policy is unique in the field.
"Iain Johnston is unquestionably the leading specialist to combine enormous expertise on Chinese foreign relations with a superb knowledge of International Relations theory," Government Department Chair Roderick MacFarquhar wrote in an e-mail message.
Rosovsky Professor of Government Elizabeth Perry agreed that Johnston, who is currently on leave teaching at Stanford, will bring unique and important skills to the government department.
Perry, who is also director of the Fairbank Center for East Asian Research, said she believes Johnston is "quite unusual, because there are very few theorists of Chinese international relations who also have a strong grounding in the methods of social science."
Johnston could not be reached for comment this week. MacFarquhar said Johnston will take the title Professor of Government.
Johnston received his bachelor's degree in international relations and history from the University of Toronto in 1981, his master's in East Asian studies from Harvard in 1985, and his doctorate in political science from the University of Michigan in 1993.
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