The leadership imperative in US relations with East Asia
In: Asian journal of political science: AJPS, Band 2, Heft 1, S. 169-196
ISSN: 0218-5377, 0218-5385
A review of two centuries of American foreign relations in East Asia reveals that American economic interests in the region were of marginal importance to the nation's economy until the 1970s. The United States tended to favour free trade and independence for the countries of East Asia, but its policies were heavily conditioned by political developments and moral impulses at home and were derivative of, or subordinate to, European-based threats. Today, for the first time, the configuration of world power, the pattern of the nation's economic interests, and the location of potential threats to security all compel the United States to focus strategically on East Asia. From an analysis of the history of american interests and policy in East Asia, twelve strategic lessons are drawn for the post-Cold War era. (AJPS/DÜI)