Among its numerous bureaus and offices, Policy Planning Staff, the State Department’s internal thinktank, whose name might be unfamiliar to readers, has played a critical role in designing and shaping U.S. foreign policy for decades. Its former member includes Jake Sullivan, recently nominated as National Security Advisor in the new Biden administration. Sullivan was the director of the Policy Planning Staff from 2011 to 2013. Members of this unit often communicate their ideas about foreign policy to the public quite openly. The current director, Peter Berkowitz, recently remarked at a panel hosted by Foundations for Defense of Democracy on the U.S. continuing support to “…preserving Taiwan’s freedom and independence…”.

Some might consider Berkowitz’s comments as diplomatic pleasantries or just cheap talk, and that would be a grave mistake as it undervalues the importance the unit plays in shaping U.S. foreign policy. Founded by the renounced diplomat and designer of the containment strategy, George Kennan, the office is tasked with forming strategies that advance U.S. interests. In its day-to-day operations, one of the unit’s essential functions is writing important speeches for the Secretary of State and providing thorough foreign policy studies for decision-makers. Their versatility allows the U.S. to exert a disproportionate amount of influence on foreign policy and the leader’s beliefs. For instance, as the key architect for China policy and adviser to Mike Pompeo, Dr. Miles Yu of the unit is believed to have strengthened Pompeo’s view of cross-Strait relations and might even motivate him to remark that “Taiwan has not been a part of China.” Comparing Pompeo’s speech with Berkowitz’s reveals that the unit has been consistent in its policy and thinking toward China.

The functioning of the Policy Planning Staff tells us a few critical things about U.S. foreign policy. First, policy formulation is not a one-person job; even the president does not have absolute control of its directions. Comparatively, their deputies dealing with the daily bread-and-butter issues are just as influential, if not more, in policy planning and implementation. Take the example of Taiwan policy; views and statements from the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs are good predictors of what is to come. With respect to Congress, the composition of the committees on foreign affairs in both House and Senate will directly influence pro-Taiwan legislation’s trajectory. Inside the White House, members of the National Security Council often help the president develop foreign policy viewpoints. Last, as mentioned, the Policy Planning Staff, which is often neglected, plays a non-negligible role.

Second, the Policy Planning Staff structure embodies an ingenious combination between “Administrative Officer” and “Affairs Officer,” allowing a political appointee to lead a group of exceptional career officers to strategize. The director of the Policy Planning Staff plays a liaison between top diplomatic career officers and other political appointees while communicating the president’s foreign policy doctrine to members inside the unit. The close working relationships between politically appointed officials and permanent civil servants (foreign affairs officers) enable the U.S. to respond to global challenges quickly and efficiently.

This functioning of the Policy Planning Staff provides valuable lessons for thinking about the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ organizational structure in Taiwan. In 2019, a controversy erupted when Mr. Vincent Chao was appointed as head of the Political Division at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in Washington D.C. Critics argue that permanent civil servants should assume the head position, citing it is unorthodox for the DPP administration to appoint Chao and eight other existing non-affairs officers in Taiwan’s embassies worldwide.

In practice, bureaucracy is often plagued by problems such as groupthink, and the inclusion of an outsider could reduce these problems’ adverse effects. The Policy Planning Staff’s unique design of institutionalizing both politically appointed administrative officer and affairs officer as its member allows the unit to reap the synergy from the office’s autonomy and flexibility in policy planning, research, and implementation. As a result, since its inception, the Policy Planning Staff has been one of the most critical strategic arms of the Secretary of State and foreign policy experts’ curdle.

In recent years, the Taiwanese government’s appointment of diplomatic personnel has become more flexible, resulting in numerous achievements such as the positive progress in US-Taiwan relations. The institutional design of the Policy Planning Staff could provide lessons. Of particular relevance is the proactive stance the Policy Planning Staff Director often takes in interacting with the broader foreign policy community. If our government could create a permanent and holistic central planning office to institutionalize the interactions between politically appointed officials and affairs officers (this argument also applies to other ministries), then it would enhance the capacity of our national security and foreign policy apparatus that could respond to new challenges and thrive under different administrations.

(Fang-Yu Chen ([email protected]) is PhD in Political Science at Michigan State University. Twitter: @FangYu_80168

Charles K.S. Wu ([email protected]) is PhD candidate in Political Science at Purdue University. Twitter: @kuanshengtwn

Austin Wang ([email protected]) is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Twitter: @wearytolove

Yao-Yuan Yeh ([email protected]) is Associate Professor of International Studies and Chair of the Department of International Studies and Modern Languages at the University of St. Thomas, Houston. Twitter: @yeh2sctw)

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