Andrew S. Erickson

Frequent China Brief contributor and Jamestown author Dr. Andrew Erickson has been acknowledged by the U.S. Navy for his outstanding research and service.

On July 29, 2024, at an award ceremony in Newport, RI to recognize sailors and civilians from the faculty and staff, Naval War College President Rear Admiral Peter A. Garvin presented Dr. Erickson with the Navy Superior Civilian Service Medal. This is “the highest honorary award the Chief of Naval Operations or the Commandant of the Marine Corps may bestow on a civilian employee in the Department of the Navy and the highest award granted at the major claimant level.”

In addition to his own leading research on PRC defense issues as a Naval War College faculty member over the past eighteen years, Dr. Erickson was recognized for helping to set up and support the Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI), and for serving as its Research Director from 2021 to 2023. The award specifies, inter alia, that Dr. Erickson has “shaped how [the] U.S. military as well as key partners and allies posture for developments in China’s military maritime domain. His research, presentations, and recommendations influenced military doctrine, and interagency assessments, policies, and actions.”

Dr. Erickson has contributed to The Jamestown Foundation as an author of 21 China Brief articles, as well as China’s Anti-Ship Ballistic Missile Development: Drivers, Trajectories, and Strategic Implications (2013) and Six Years at Sea… And Counting: Gulf of Aden Anti-Piracy and China’s Maritime Commons Presence (2015). He also participated in Jamestown events as a conference speaker for over a decade. Jamestown President Peter Mattis offered that, “I met Andrew when I was editor of China Brief¸ and it is hard to imagine an analyst more deserving of this award. His earnestness, integrity, and acumen shine out, and Professor Erickson demonstrates how impactful proper analytical work can be and exemplifies the standard for which we strive at Jamestown.”

“Andrew was instrumental in the establishment of the Institute after arriving in Newport in June 2004 and his penetrating insights into China’s military maritime domain developments continue to guide CMSI’s research efforts today,” CMSI Director Christopher Sharman stated. “Like each of CMSI’s Directors before me, I depend on Andrew for his advice and unique insights into the Navy’s most pressing information needs. This award is long overdue, but it’s great to see the Navy finally recognize Andrew’s two decades of service and his contributions that have helped to define our future Navy and support our nation in this era of great power competition.”

Shortly after the awards ceremony, two of Dr. Erickson’s longtime research projects came to fruition. Rice University’s Baker Institute published his 168-page study on the implications if China were to achieve control over Taiwan. The National Bureau of Asian Research published his multimedia essay on the geography of China’s military maritime development.