Isaac B. Kardon, Ph.D. (孔适海博士) is senior fellow in the Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he researches, writes, and speaks on China’s maritime power. He also advises senior leaders across government and industry on geopolitical and geoeconomic risk.
Kardon’s work has been published in the New York Times, Financial Times, International Security, The China Quarterly, Security Studies, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, and the Naval War College Review. He has regularly testified before the U.S Congress on his specialized work on China’s maritime transport and logistics, overseas basing, maritime disputes, and international legal practice.
He is adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins SAIS and was formerly assistant professor at the U.S. Naval War College, China Maritime Studies Institute.
His first book, China’s Law of the Sea: The New Rules of Maritime Order was published by Yale University Press in 2023 and has been reviewed in Foreign Affairs, The Economist, and Foreign Policy.
His current book project is The Great Red Fleet: How the China Ocean Shipping Company Made China Great Again.
Select Recent Publications
“How America Lost Command of the Commons — and Why the Open Seas May Soon Be Tolled” in Foreign Affairs
“Rocks vs. Chips: How the U.S.-China competition is playing out for high-tech advantage” in Carnegie Endowment for International Peace →
“How China Will Seize Not Squeeze Taiwan” in Foreign Affairs →
“Pier Competitor: China’s Power Position in Global Ports” in International Security →
“China’s Global Maritime Access: Alternatives to Basing in the 21st Century” in Security Studies →