The Monterey Trialogue provides a platform for experts from the United States, Russia, and China to engage in constructive conversation about history and culture, conflict and cooperation. 

Our Purpose

The Monterey Trialogue fosters constructive exchange among American, Russian, and Chinese experts and ex-officials. Since the middle of the 20th century, the shifting relationship among the United States, Russia, and China has had a profound impact on each country separately and on the world as a whole. Yet political, cultural, and linguistic barriers have hindered the study of the full trilateral dynamic. At a time when even bilateral channels of communication have begun to break down, the Monterey Trialogue offers a new and necessary perspective on the defining geopolitical relationship of our time. It also provides experts from the three countries the increasingly rare opportunity to meet and share their different perspectives in person.

Our Work

In-Person Trialogues

Each year, the Monterey Trialogue hosts two closed conferences examining the US-China-Russia relationship in the context of a particular region or theme. Trialogues take place in fourth countries easily accessible to all participants. Our inaugural meeting was held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in November 2023 and involved approximately thirty experts and ex-officials from seven countries (USA, Russia, China, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan). Our next conference will take place in Belgrade, Serbia in May 2024 and will focus on the Arctic. We will hold our third meeting in South Africa in late November 2024.

Summer Symposia

The Monterey Trialogue contributes to the creation of a new generation of Russia and China experts by exposing promising graduate students to leading voices on and from both countries for several weeks each summer. The eighth annual Monterey Summer Symposium on Russia will be held in Armenia, Georgia, and Turkey from July 1 to July 20, 2024. The inaugural Monterey Summer Symposium on China will take place over two weeks in the summer of 2025 on the island of Hainan (which has a visa-free regime for foreigners). 

Public Content

The Monterey Trialogue also provides resources directly to the media and broader public. These include video lectures by noted experts from the United States, Russia, and China; written interviews on current events in the context of the trilateral relationship; and a podcast on history, culture, and current affairs featuring guests from all three countries.

Featured Content

Henry Wang: China, Russia and the United States

Sergey Radchenko: The Return of Triangular Politics

Elena Chernenko: Bilateral and Multilateral Cooperation in the Cyber Sphere: A Way Forward?

Sig Hecker: The Global Nuclear Order

How will you change the world?

Get Info

What makes us different?

Visit Campus

Next Application Deadline: April 1

Apply Now