APPFI (also commonly known as Pathways) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the prominent Chinese think tank, the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies. Currently led by Professor Chen Dongxiao, SIIS has been one of the hubs of regional Track Two dialogues and a prominent source of policy advise for the Chinese government on foreign affairs for over fifty years. It was ranked one of the top ten Chinese think tanks In 2006, and one of the top ten global think tanks (non-American) in 2008. SIIS comprises seven institutes and six research centers, and has 106 full-time research fellows and staff. Among its current regular activities is a Track Two seminar on regional security architecture, the last one held in July 2017 and attended by Dr. Baviera.
Participants of the SIIS Seminar on “Building an Asia-Pacific Security Architecture: Consensus, Challenges and Prospects” co-organized with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (Indonesia), July 2017. Photo credit: SIIS 2017 Annual Report
Pathways will hold a roundtable discussion with SIIS in early June as part of an official visit to think tanks in Beijing and Shanghai. The delegation will be led by Board Chairman Atty Raphael Lotilla.