Professor Brendan Taylor is a Professor of Strategic Studies and Deputy Director of the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs. Specialising in great power strategic relations in the Asia-Pacific, economic sanctions and regional security architecture, he previously served as Head of the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre from 2011.

Professor Taylor holds a PhD and Masters degree from The Australian National University and a BA (Hons) from Waikato University in New Zealand. With a longstanding association at the ANU, Dr Taylor has also held the positions of Interim Director of the Coral Bell School (October 2016 - January 2018) and Head of the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre.

With his current research focusing on flashpoints in Asia, to be published as a book by Black Ink in 2018, Professor Taylor is often sought as an expert on Asia Pacific security, including China and North Korea. Other areas of research interest and expertise include Taiwan and the East China Sea, Asian security architecture such as the Shangri-La Dialogue and East Asia Forum, as well as the US-Australia alliance.

Seeking to produce work both academically credible and accessible to broader audiences, Professor Taylor has featured in leading international journals, including the Washington Quarterly, Survival and International Affairs. He has authored or edited five books, including Australia as an Asia-Pacific Regional Power and Sanctions as Grand Strategy for the Adelphi Series. His book ‘Australia’s American Alliance,’ co-edited with Stephan Frühling and Peter Dean has become required reading at the Australian Department of Defence and the US Pentagon.

Professor Taylor has previously taught courses for the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre and is a regular media commentator.