Professional & Educational Background

Prof. Dr. Mohd Kamarulnizam Abdullah is a Professor and Principal Fellow at the Asian Studies Centre, Institute for Malaysia and International Studies (IKMAS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). He previously served at UKM from 1991 to 2012 and later joined the School of International Studies (SoIS), Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) as a Professor in National Security for ten years (2012-2022). He holds a PhD from Lancaster University, UK; an MA (International Relations) from the Australian National University. Currently, Dr. Abdullah serves as a Senior Consultant for the Home Ministry’s project on the National Action Plan (NAP) on Violent Extremism. He has also been involved in other governmental appointments and international consultative projects, including Maritime Criminality in Malaysia (United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime, UNODC); Malaysia’s White Paper on Defence (Defence Ministry); Rehabilitation, De-radicalization and Counter-Terrorism Programs, and the Formulation of Home Security Policy (Home Affairs Ministry). Additionally, he is the country coordinator for the International Civilization Dialogue and Religious Understanding Program (Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs). Dr. Abdullah is presently an editorial member for the Scopus indexed Journal of Human Security and Journal of International Studies (JIS); Jurnal Kinabalu (EJK), Jurnal Hubungan Internasional (UMY), as well as an associate member of the Southeast Asia Conflict Studies Network. He holds the position of non-resident professor at Jinan University, Guangzhou; the Institute of Diplomacy Timor Leste; and Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Unisza). He also served as a resident professor at Universitas Pasundan Bandung; Universitas President, Bekasi; and Universitas Pembangunan Veteran Nasional, Yogyakarta.

Research Interests & Expertise

His areas of research focus on national and regional security, border studies, political violence, terrorism, and conflict studies. Among his latest publications are Financial innovations in terrorism financing: a case study of Malaysian terror financing (Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice, 2023); Navigating Against Salafi-Wahabi Expansion in Malaysia: The Role of State and Society (Studia Islamika, 2022), Malaysia: Adapting to the Dynamic Changes of Terrorist Threats.’ (co-author, 2019, Non-Western Responses to Terrorism, Manchester University Press).

Email kamarulnizam@ukm.edu.my

1. 1998 - PhD in Politics, Lancaster University
2. 1992 - MA in Intenational Relations, Australian National University
3. 1990 - BA in Political Science (Minor Middle Eastern International Relations), University of Utah