Paul Heer served as National Intelligence Officer for East Asia from 2007 to 2015, a period of immense change both within China and in the U.S.'s perception of China. The position capped a long career as a CIA analyst focused on East Asia, during which he also earned a PhD in diplomatic history, with a focus on George Kennan's role in formulating East Asia policy during the early Cold War. He's now a distinguished fellow at the Center for the National Interest, where he writes and speaks frequen