Brian Hart

Deputy Director and Fellow, China Power Project
Brian Hart

Brian Hart is deputy director and fellow of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He also helps to lead Hidden Reach, a CSIS special initiative that shines light on underappreciated sources of China's influence through open-source data and satellite imagery. His research focuses on Chinese foreign and security policy, China’s military and defense industrial base, Taiwan security issues, U.S.-China relations, and Chinese technology policy. Brian is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. Prior to joining the CSIS China Power Project, he conducted research at the Project 2049 Institute, the CSIS Freeman Chair in China Studies, Trivium China, and Wake Forest University. Brian earned his MA with honors in China studies and international economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and a graduate certificate in China studies from the SAIS Hopkins-Nanjing Center. He received a BA with honors in politics and international affairs from Wake Forest University.

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China's Power: Up for Debate 2026

Join in-person or online for one of CSIS's premier annual China conferences. Hear discussions and debates on core issues underpinning China's power and U.S.-China relations. 

Event — October 28, 2026

Japan as a Maritime Great Power and the China Challenge

Join the CSIS Japan Chair for a discussion of Japan’s evolution as one of the world’s most significant maritime great powers, the challenges it faces from China, and the potential for U.S.-Japan cooperation.

Event — October 1, 2026

Extended Range: China Upgrades Its Military Base in Djibouti

China’s military has added two new communications facilities at its overseas base in Djibouti, strengthening its ability to operate far from home and likely collect intelligence across the Middle East and Africa.

Digital Feature by Matthew P. Funaiole, Brian Hart, Aidan Powers-Riggs, and Douglas Comstock — September 17, 2026

China’s Hunger Games

CSIS's Caitlin Welsh and Brian Hart analyze China's leveraging of food markets for geopolitical influence for Foreign Affairs.

Commentary by Caitlin Welsh and Brian Hart — August 11, 2026

Troubled Straits: Analyzing Trade Chokepoints in the South China Sea

This CSIS brief offers groundbreaking insight into the value and types of goods flowing through eight different South China Sea chokepoints. The analysis reveals each country’s reliance on each chokepoint and challenges assumptions about their relative importance.

Brief by CSIS Scholars — July 1, 2026

Audio Briefs

New Activity at Possible Chinese Intelligence Facilities in Cuba

An audio version of "⁠New Activity at Possible Chinese Intelligence Facilities in Cuba⁠," a new commentary by CSIS’s Matthew P. Funaiole, Brian Hart, Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., and Aidan Powers-Riggs. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs.

Podcast Episode by Matthew P. Funaiole, Brian Hart, Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., and Aidan Powers-Riggs — June 18, 2026

Audio Briefs

A New Supercarrier Emerges

China’s fourth aircraft carrier is rapidly taking shape at Dalian Shipyard. Satellite imagery reveals a vessel likely to be larger and more advanced than its predecessors, with evidence suggesting it may be China’s first nuclear-powered carrier.

Digital Feature by Matthew P. Funaiole, Brian Hart, Aidan Powers-Riggs, and Joseph S. Bermudez Jr. — May 21, 2026

Audio Briefs

The U.S.-China Trade Truce Has Not Solved the Gallium Problem

An audio version of “⁠The U.S.-China Trade Truce Has Not Solved the Gallium Problem⁠,” a new commentary by CSIS’s Aidan Powers-Riggs, Brian Hart, and Matthew P. Funaiole. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs.

Podcast Episode by Aidan Powers-Riggs, Brian Hart, and Matthew P. Funaiole — May 11, 2026

Audio Briefs