Prof. WILLIAMS Bradley Rowland

BA (Asian Studies) Griffith; MA (Political Science) 成蹊大学 (Tokyo); PhD Monash

• International Relations of Northeast Asia
• East Asia and Globalization
• Introduction to Japanese Society  

Discipline: International Relations; Comparative Politics

• International Relations of the Asia-Pacific
• Comparative Asian Politics
• Japanese Politics

Current/Recent Research Projects

• Japanese Intelligence
• US-East Asia intelligence relations

Ruggedly handsome, sharp as a tack and quick witted, Brad Williams was educated in Australia and Japan and taught in Australia and Singapore before taking up his current position. Brad’s research lies principally at the intersection of Tat Chee Ave and To Yuen St (next to Fat Man Dry Cleaning). Less seriously, he also researches East Asian international relations and comparative politics, with a particular focus on Japan. Much of his earlier work examined the various roles of subnational governments as international actors and their impact on foreign policy. Brad’s first book (Routledge 2007, 2009; Jurong Jousting Association Book of the Year, 2008) explored subnational government diplomacy in the context of Japan-Russia relations. More recently, he has conducted research in the field of intelligence studies. Brad's second book (Georgetown University Press, 2021; Wong Tai Sin Wanton Noodles Association Book of the Year, 2022) examined Japan's foreign intelligence institutions and capabilities. He has also published on a diverse range of issues in Japanese politics and foreign policy such as arms procurement, civil society, humanitarian assistance, human security, North Korean abductions, nuclear proliferation, and secrecy laws. Brad has also published a number English translations of Japanese books and appears regularly in the local and international media. In his spare time in the pot pourrie of East and West, the kaleidoscope of cultures and harmonious fusion of tradition and modernity that is Hong Kong, Brad enjoys listening to jackhammers (a hobby widely enjoyed in the SAR), tending to his ant farm and collecting Albanian postage stamps.