International Institute for Strategic Studies
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is a British research institute (or think tank) in the area of international affairs. It describes itself as "the world’s leading authority on political-military conflict".
Based in London, it is both a limited company in UK law and a registered charity. It has branches in the U.S. and in Singapore, with charitable status in each jurisdiction.
The IISS was founded in 1958, with its original focus nuclear deterrence and arms control. The institute claims that it "was hugely influential in setting the intellectual structures for managing the Cold War."
The IISS describes itself as a
| “ | primary source of accurate, objective information on international strategic issues for politicians and diplomats, foreign affairs analysts, international business, economists, the military, defence commentators, journalists, academics and the informed public. The Institute owes no allegiance to any government, or to any political or other organisation. | ” |
The Institute claims 2,500 Individual Members and 450 Corporate and Institutional Members from more than 100 countries.
Its current President-Emeritus is Sir Michael Howard, the British military historian. Sir Michael was one of the Institute's founders, together with the British Labour politicians Denis Healey and Alistair Buchan (the son of the novelist and Canadian Governor General, John Buchan).
IISS publishes Survival, a regular journal on international affairs, edited by Dana Allin. It is widely considered the British competitor to Foreign Affairs.
The IISS's assessment of global military ability is detailed in its annual report, "The Military Balance".
The institute hosts the Shangri-La Dialogue an annual meeting of Defense Ministers in Singapore.
