Dr. Paul J. Smith joined the U.S. Naval War College National Security Affairs department in July 2006 and teaches the Security Strategies course. His writing reflects his personal views only and does not reflect the positions or perspectives of the U.S. Navy or U.S. Government. Smith formerly was an associate/assistant professor with the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (APCSS) in Hawaii. His research focuses on transnational security issues and the international politics of East Asia (with particular emphasis on the People’s Republic of China). He has published articles in various publications, and chapters in many books, and is the author of the book The Terrorism Ahead: Confronting Transnational Violence in the Twenty-first Century (M.E. Sharpe, 2007). He frequently provides commentary to The International Herald Tribune, Christian Science Monitor, Defense News, Japan Times, and World Politics Review.

Smith serves on the international editorial board of the terrorism-focused journal Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict. He has delivered lectures on terrorism finance and financial crime to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Australian Federal Police (AFP). He is a member of the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCI). Smith has lived and studied in Taiwan, the People’s Republic of China, and the United Kingdom, and he is conversant in Mandarin. Smith earned his Bachelor of Arts from Washington and Lee University, his Master of Arts from the University of London (School of Oriental and African Studies-SOAS), and his J.D. and Ph.D. (Political Science) from the University of Hawaii.

Last Updated: April 7, 2021

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