Worse than a monolith : alliance politics and problems of coercive diplomacy in Asia / Thomas J. Christensen.

Author
Christensen, Thomas J., 1962- [Browse]
Format
Book
Language
English
Published/​Created
Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, ©2011.
Description
306 pages ; 25 cm

Availability

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Firestone Library - Faculty Publications DS35.2 .C47 2011 Browse related items Request
    Firestone Library - Stacks DS35.2 .C47 2011 Browse related items Request
      Stokes Library - Wallace Hall (SPIA) DS35.2 .C47 2011 Browse related items Request
        Stokes Library - Wallace Hall (SPIA) DS35.2 .C47 2011 Browse related items Request
          Stokes Library - Wallace Hall (SPIA) DS35.2 .C47 2011 Browse related items Request

            Details

            Subject(s)
            Series
            Princeton studies in international history and politics [More in this series]
            Summary note
            Worse Than a Monolith demonstrates that when states are engaged in coercive diplomacy- combining threats and assurances to influence the behavior of real or potential adversaries- divisions, rivalries, and lack of coordination within the opposing camp often make it more difficult to prevent the onset of conflict, to prevent existing conflicts from escalating, and to negotiate the end to those conflicts promptly. Focusing on relations between the Communist and anti-Communist alliances in Asia during the Cold War, Thomas Christensen explores how internal divisions and lack of cohesion in the two alliances complicated and undercut coercive diplomacy by sending confusing signals about strength, resolve, and intent. In the case of the Communist camp, internal mistrust and rivalries catalyzed the movement's aggressiveness in ways that we would not have expected from a more cohesive movement under Moscow's clear control. Reviewing newly available archival material, Christensen examines the instability in relations across the Asian Cold War divide, and sheds new light on the Korean and Vietnam wars. While recognizing clear differences between the Cold War and post-Cold War environments, he investigates how efforts to adjust burden-sharing roles among the United States and its Asian security partners have complicated U.S.-China security relations since the collapse of the Soviet Union. -- From publisher description.
            Bibliographic references
            Includes bibliographical references (p. 277-295) and index.
            Contents
            • Introduction
            • Growing pains: alliance formation and the road to conflict in Korea
            • Alliance problems, signaling, and escalation of Asian conflict
            • The benefits of communist alliance coordination and the continuing costs of U.S. alliance formation 1951-56
            • The Sino-Soviet split and problems for the United States in Asia, Europe, and Americas, 1956-64
            • From escalation in Vietnam to Sino-American rapprochement 1964-72
            • The fall and revival of coercive diplomacy: security partnerships and Sino-American relations, 1972-2009
            • Conclusion.
            ISBN
            • 9780691142609 ((hardcover ; : alk. paper))
            • 0691142602 ((hardcover ; : alk. paper))
            • 9780691142616 ((pbk. ; : alk. paper))
            • 0691142610 ((pbk. ; : alk. paper))
            • 9781400838813
            • 1400838819
            LCCN
            2010051375
            OCLC
            679940651
            Other standard number
            • 40019175266
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