CIAO DATE: 11/06

World Affairs

Volume 10, Number 2 (Summer 2006)

 

Asian Security And Economic Convergence

• Letter from the Editor-in-Chief (PDF, 2 pages, 44k)

• Post-Globalisation: The Asian Superpower In The Making

  Asia may become the new hegemon, spurred by impressive industrial and economic growth. It all portends a new world order in which the US fades out and Asia as a conglomerate superpower, consisting mainly of Russia, China, Japan and India, synergistically unified in diversity, for mutual benefit, may vie for supremacy with the other looming superpower of Europe, and the PanArab-Islamic civilisation, in the view of James Leigh.

• The Nehruvian Model And The Post-Cold War World

  India’s socio-cultural heritage includes the principles and values of plurality, respect for diversity, tolerance and compromise, which are highly relevant to the global community as a whole while being largely shared by other Asian peoples. As Prithvi Ram Mudiam points out Nehru’s theory of international relations enshrines these principles, adapting them to the modern politico-economic context and it is, as such, very appropriate for building a new Asian order.

• Foreign Exchange Reserves Policies Of India And Other Asian Countries: Problems And Opportunities

  A few Asian states currently hold the world’s largest foreign exchange reserves but India for one, has not made a productive use of its surplus balance, which carries a high opportunity cost. Setting up Asian economic and financial mechanisms (such as a Reserve Bank of Asia) in order to plow back this bounty into infrastructure build-up could help rapidly overcome the continent (and the world’s) poverty according to Ramgopal Agarwala.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation: A Balance Of Opportunity From modest beginnings as a forum for regional dialogue on issues of terrorism and security, the SCO is evolving into a collective defence and cooperation pact between the leading powers of Asia which can eventually become both an “anti-NATO” and an economic union, as René Wadlow points out.

• Changing Landscape Of Northeast Asian Security

  While the six-party talks about the North Korean nuclear programme seem to have come to a standstill, Sandip Kumar Mishra points out the relations between the two Koreas have significantly improved while South Korea has grown closer to China and to Japan, despite periodic frictions. The “peaceful rise” of China as the dominant power is causing alarm in Tokyo and Washington, prompting Japan to build up its military might. Taiwan on the other hand, seems to grow ever more dependent on China.

• Japan And The Two Koreas: The Challenges And Prospects Of Confidence-Building (PDF, 16 pages, 80K)

  The millenary relations between Korea and Japan have been intense, fruitful and conflictive. They are now largely determined, in the wider regional context, by the evolving power equation between China, Russia and the USA whose rivalries resulted in the division of Korea into two inimical states. John O Magbadelo argues that both Japan and China are interested in the stability of the Korean peninsula on the basis of the status quo.

• Lesson Of The “Broken Hearts”: The Rise And Fall Of Indonesian Reformasi (PDF, 20 pages, 97K)

  Indonesia’s history, since the 1965 military coup that ushered in Suharto’s dictatorship is marked by the ultra-/liberal economic policies sponsored by the USA and global financial organizations. The resulting social injustice and instability have brought about the rise of Islamic and Nationalist reform movements which have, however, so far been unable to change the country’s course according to Songok H Thornton.

• Environmental Dimension Of Regional Security: A Comparative Study Of ASEAN And SAARC

  In the wake of the mounting worldwide concern about the environment, regional trans-national Asian bodies have sought to coordinate the responses and policies of their member states; however the practical implementations of the recommended measures has generally been deficient, often due to bilateral strategic misgivings and political differences, especially within SAARC as noted by Bharti Chhibber. ASEAN on the other hand tends to be more effective in carrying out the resolutions adopted by its members.

• The New International Iranian Oil Bourse And The Global Economy

  The American empire is struggling to delay its own economic debtinduced collapse by maintaining the fast declining US Dollar as the world’s oil currency. However, sinking confidence is leading some energy exporting states, especially Iran and Russia to seek alternatives to the “greenback”. The Euro represents one of those alternatives and Krassimir Petrov contends that the expected opening of an Iranian oil bourse may help bring about the end of the Dollar as the global reserve currency.

• The Standoff On The Iranian Nuclear Issue — A Reappraisal Before The Final Countdown

  The war between Israel and Lebanon could escalate into a regional conflict which would provide the context for a massive, long-planned US-Israeli attack on Iran. Vinod Saighal analyses the strategic situation resulting from the US invasion of Iraq, from Tehran’s regional ambitions and from Israel’s increasing troubles with its neighbours.

Review Essay

• Jammu And Kashmir As A Lifeline Of Pakistan

  P M Kamath sketches the historical background of the Indo- Pakistani conflict over the status of Kashmir. He recalls that successive US Administrations have fostered and sponsored terrorist guerilla movements in Afghanistan and Pakistan for their own strategic ends. Pakistan's survival may now depend on the promotion of 'Jihad' against India, which indeed involves the same terrorist outfits trained in Afghanistan and thus perpetuates the violence and the instability in the region.

Reviews

• Mary C Carras

• A Subramanyam Raju

Documents

1. A Statement by General Leonid Ivashov, Vice-President of The Academy of Geopolitical Affairs, Moscow, Russia.

2. Joint Communiqué of the Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, Shanghai, June 15, 2006.

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