The Heritage Foundation's Asian Studies Center

Asian Studies Center
Formation1983
HeadquartersThe Heritage Foundation, Washington, D.C., U.S.
Director
Jeff M. Smith
Parent organization
The Heritage Foundation
Websitewww.heritage.org/asia

The Asian Studies Center is a research center focused on Asia at The Heritage Foundation, a Washington, D.C.–based research center. It was established in 1983.

The Asian Studies Center hosts the B.C. Lee Lecture, which features a lecture on an Asia-related topic by diplomats, experts, or journalists. The center also engages with Asian-Pacific media in Washington, D.C., through its Washington Roundtable for the Asia Pacific Press (WRAPP) program.

In 2009, the center published Key Asian Indicators: A 2009 Book of Charts, which provided a snapshot Asian countries.

In September 2022, Jeff M. Smith was appointed as center's director, succeeding Walter Lohman.[1]

B.C. Lee Lecture

The B.C. Lee Lecture focuses on U.S. Relations with the Asia-Pacific region. They are funded by an endowment from Samsung in honor of the late B.C. Lee, the corporation's founder.

Year Lecturer
1995 Henry Kissinger
1996 Jesse Helms
1997 Benjamin Gilman
1998 Donald Rumsfeld
1999 Edwin Meese III
2000 Paul Wolfowitz
2001 Doug Bereuter
2002 Henry Hyde
2003 Richard Lugar
2004 Colin Powell
2006 Condoleezza Rice
2007 Henry Paulson
2008 Richard V. Allen
2010 Stephen Hadley
2011 Joe Lieberman
2019 Dan Sullivan
2021 Mike Pence[2]
2022 Mike Pompeo[3]
2023 Ambassador Hyundong Cho (with Bill Hagerty, Young Kim)[4]
2024 Matt Pottinger[5]
2025 Rep. John Moolenaar[6]

Washington Roundtable for the Asia-Pacific Press

The Washington Roundtable for the Asia-Pacific Press (WRAPP) is the largest organization of Asian media in the United States. It is currently affiliated with The Heritage Foundation's Asian Studies Center. WRAPP's purpose is to provide Asian journalists greater access to "Inside the Beltway" policy makers.

Since its inception in 1994, WRAPP has sponsored monthly news briefings tailored to the needs of Asian journalists. Roundtable sessions have included Rep. Benjamin Gilman (R-NY), Chairman of the House International Relations Committee, Rep. Doug Bereuter (R-NB), Chairman of the House Asia-Pacific Subcommittee, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Kurt M. Campbell, and David Broder, columnist for The Washington Post.

WRAPP membership includes nearly all Washington correspondents from China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and other countries in the region. Also among the Roundtable's 400 members are U.S.-based print and broadcast media and international wire services and news agencies whose Washington bureaus cover Asia-Pacific diplomacy, trade, and security.

References

  1. ^ "Heritage Names Jeff Smith New Director of Asian Studies Center". The Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original on September 26, 2022. Retrieved 2023-07-10.
  2. ^ The Heritage Foundation (2021-07-14). The 2021 B.C. Lee Lecture featuring Mike Pence. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ The Heritage Foundation (2022-03-17). The 2022 B.C. Lee Lecture featuring The Honorable Mike Pompeo. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ The Heritage Foundation (2023-07-11). The 2023 B.C. Lee Lecture: The Future of the U.S.-South Korea Alliance in the Indo-Pacific. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ The Heritage Foundation (2024-07-02). The 2024 B.C. Lee Lecture featuring Matt Pottinger. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via YouTube.
  6. ^ The Heritage Foundation (2025-07-22). The 2025 B.C. Lee Lecture featuring Congressman John Moolenaar. Retrieved 2025-08-03 – via YouTube.