Wei-chin Lee
Professor
BA National Taiwan University, 1978
MA University of Oregon, 1983
PhD University of Oregon, 1986
Areas of Expertise: Politics in China and Taiwan, East Asian International Relations, International Institutions, International Security, Civil-military Relations
Professor Wei-chin Lee has published several books, including The Mutual Non-denial Principle, China’s Interests, and Taiwan’s Expansion of International Participation (2014), and National Security, Public Opinion, and Regime Asymmetry (co-edited, 2017), Taiwan’s Political Re-Alignment and Diplomatic Challenges (edited, 2019). His articles have appeared in numerous scholarly journals, such as American Journal of Chinese Studies, Asian Affairs, Asian Perspective, Asian Security, Asian Survey, Journal of Asian and African Studies, Journal of Chinese Political Science, Journal of Contemporary China, Journal of Comparative Communism, Journal of Economics and International Relations, Journal of Northeast Asian Studies, The Nonproliferation Review, Ocean Development and International Law, Pacific Focus, SAIS Review, Taiwan Journal of Democracy, and World Affairs. His teaching and research interests are foreign policy and domestic politics of China and Taiwan, US policy toward East Asia, international security, and international institutions.
POL 116 International Politics
The purpose of this course is to help students develop tools for understanding the complexities of the international system. It introduces students to various subject areas in the field of international politics: methodology and theoretical paradigms, major thematic debates in the post-Cold War era, foreign policy studies, ecological politics, international political economy, war and military conflicts, international law, and international organizations.
POL 248 Chinese Politics
This course covers the following topics: China’s historical context and current trends of political governance and leadership changes, structural arrangement of political institutions, major political movements since 1949, economic transition to market economy, recent development of political liberalization, democracy movements and human rights, the modernization of the People’s Liberation Army, the evolution of Beijing’s strategic view and diplomatic policy shifts, China’s role in world politics, and the Taiwan issue. The goal of this course is to give students an overview of the complex subject of Chinese politics and to make it possible for students to conduct independent study of various issues in the future.
POL 260 US and East Asia
This course traces and examines the development of East Asian relations with the US. Topics include US interests and policies in East Asia, East Asian colonial legacy and its impacts, Korean War, Vietnam War, East Asian political economy and developmental strategy, the relationship between economic development and democratization, regional political and security policy changes and challenges with special focus on China’s recent rise and Japan’s role in regional politics, and East Asian regional organizations such as the ASEAN.
POL 261 International Law
This course explores the nature and scope of international law, treaties and international customs, legal status of states and international organizations, diplomatic immunity, International Court of Justice, the competition between domestic law and international law, individuals in international law, human rights, laws of war, International Criminal Court, and peaceful settlement of international disputes. Attention would be devoted to international laws that limit state action or facilitate state cooperation in the international community.
POL 262 International Organizations
The central purpose of this course is to evaluate the nature, role, and policy of international organizations in world politics. Theoretical approaches to international institution will be analyzed and assessed. An overview of different types of international organizations (IGOs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will be examined in terms of their organization structure and functions in different issue areas, such as collective security, humanitarian intervention, international human rights protection mechanism, international economic institutions and economic development, environmental politics, and regional integration. This course will pay special attention to the institutional arrangement of the UN system and assess its capacity to respond to the 21st century challenges.