This edited book examines the contemporary regional security concerns in the Asia-Pacific recognizing the ‘Butterfly effect’, the concept that small causes can have large effects: ‘the flap of a butterfly’s wings can cause a typhoon halfway around the world’. For many Asia-Pacific states, domestic security challenges are at least as important as external security considerations. Recent events (both natural disasters and man-made disasters) have pointed to the inherent physical, economic, social and political vulnerabilities that exist in the region. Both black swan events and persistent threats to security characterize the challenges within the Asia-Pacific region. Transnational security challenges such as global climate change, environmental degradation, pandemics, energy security, supply chain security, resource scarcity, terrorism and organized crime are shaping the security landscape regionally and globally. The significance of emerging transnational security challenges in the Asia-Pacific Region impact globally and conversely, security developments in those other regions affect the Asia-Pacific region.

"Since September 11, 2001, our newspapers have been filled with the ""war on terror""; our governments have mobilized their resources for ""homeland security""; and people everywhere are braced for more terrorist attacks. Yet while the new threat is genuine, w"

Contents: (1) The Rise of Islamist Militancy in Southeast Asia: Overview; The Rise of Al Qaeda in Southeast Asia; (2) The Jemaah Islamiya (JI) Network: History of JI; JI¿s Relationship to Al Qaeda; JI¿s Size and Structure; (3) Indonesia: Recent Events; The Bali Bombings and Other JI attacks in Indonesia; The Trial and Release of Baasyir; (4) The Philippines: Abu Sayyaf; The MILF; The Philippine Communist Party; (5) Thailand: Southern Insurgency; Current Government¿s Approach; Little Evidence of Transnational Elements; (6) Malaysia: Recent Events; A Muslim Voice of Moderation; Maritime Concerns; Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Malaysia; Terrorist Groups in Malaysia; Malaysia¿s Counter-Terrorism Efforts; (7) Singapore: U.S.-Singapore Coop.

"This handbook explains the rise of terrorist groups in the Asia-Pacific region, among them ethno-nationalist groups, jihadi groups, as well as Islamic-State provinces. Government responses to these threats vary, but a common thread is the lack of preparation for terrorists' use of cyber tools to recruit operatives and organize attacks. Co-edited by one of the world's most knowledgeable experts on terrorism, Professor Rohan Gunaratna, this book is a must read for anyone interested in the growing threat of terrorism in the Asia-Pacific region." Jessica Stern Author of Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill and co-author of ISIS: the State of Terror "The threat posed by the Islamic State to our region is unprecedented! The Handbook of Terrorism in the Asia-Pacific is a must read to understand the threat and craft a response." Dato Ayob Khan Head, Counter-Terrorism, Malaysia "Terrorism is a global threat, as this useful and timely Handbook reveals, showing that every country in the Asia-Pacific region faces some form of potentially violent political, ethnic and religious extremism. The Handbook is both comprehensive and authoritative, relying on the expertise of Asia's finest centre of terrorism research. It is invaluable -- a country-by-country resource for business, government, journalism, and the concerned public -- and will be the go-to reference for years to come." Professor Mark Juergensmeyer Author of Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence "The handbook is an invaluable compendium for students of terrorism in the Asia-Pacific region over the past 70 years. It describes the nature and aspirations of the groups seeking to use force against both legitimate governments and innocent civilian populations, and analyses the responses of governments around the region. It will prove an essential companion for counter-terrorism experts across the region, providing accurate context against which they can understand and deal with the problem of terrorism on both a national and a cooperative regional basis. Its authors and contributors are to be commended for their comprehensive and intelligent contribution." Journal of Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism The Handbook of Terrorism in the Asia-Pacific provides a historical overview of terrorism in the Asia-Pacific, the evolution of threat, and the present threat faced by countries with the rise of the Islamic State (IS). This is a concise and readable handbook which examines the origins of the current wave of terrorism across countries in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Northeast Asia and the Pacific, and identifies emerging trends and new forms of terror that have altered the landscape and rendered the region increasingly vulnerable to asymmetric attacks. Comprising of more than 20 chapters, this handbook will be a useful source of reference for undergraduate and graduate students focused on understanding the causes of terrorism and insurgency in the Asia-Pacific.

From the war on terror to the rise of China, this book unlocks the major strategic themes and security challenges of the early twenty-first century. Strategy and Security in the Asia-Pacific provides the analytical frameworks needed to make sense of this complex but exciting strategic universe. Offering a unique mix of global strategic thinking and Asia-Pacific security analysis, this book is for readers from Sydney to Seoul who want to put their own local security challenges in a wider regional and global context. It is also for North American and European readers requiring an understanding of the dynamic security developments in the Asia-Pacific region around which so much of global strategy is increasingly based. The really vital questions facing the international community are dealt with here: Why do governments and groups still use armed force? Has warfare really changed in the information age? Why should we be concerned about non-traditional security challenges such as water shortages and the spread of infectious disease? Is a great clash imminent between the United States and China? What are the prospects for peace on the Korean peninsula and between India and Pakistan? Can Southeast Asia survive the challenges of transnational terrorism? What does security mean for the Pacific island countries and for Australia and New Zealand? With contributions from leading commentators and analysts, Strategy and Security in the Asia-Pacific offers a comprehensive and authoritative introduction to the field.

During recent years, in its traditional role as an important Asia-Pacific regional power, Australia has had to cope with a rapidly changing external security environment and a series of new challenges, including a rising China, an increasingly assertive United States, and most notably the Global War against Terror. This book considers the changing nature of Australia’s identity and role in the Asia-Pacific, and the forces behind these developments, with particular attention towards security alignments and alliance relationships. It outlines the contours of Australia’s traditional role as a key regional middle power and the patterns of its heavy reliance on security alignments and alliances. Brendan Taylor goes on to consider Australia’s relationships with other regional powers including Japan, China, Indonesia and India, uncovering the underlying purposes and expectations associated with these relationships, their evolving character – particularly in the post Cold War era – and likely future directions. He discusses the implications for the region of Australia’s new ‘Pacific doctrine’ of intervention, whether Australia’s traditional alliance preferences are compatible with the emergence of a new East Asian security mechanism, and the impact of new, transnational and non-traditional security challenges such as terrorism and failed states.

This volume argues that international security in the Asia-Pacific lends itself to contradictory analyses of centrifugal and centripetal trends. Transitional polycentrism is intrinsically awkward as a description of the security of states and their populations; it implies the loosening of state control and the emergence of newly asserted authority by mixed constellations of intergovernmental organizations and non-state actors. It implies a competition of agendas: threats to the integrity of borders and human security threats such as natural disasters, airliner crashes, and displacement by man-made pollution and food scarcity. Conversely, polycentrism could also imply a return to a more neo-realist oriented international order where great powers ignore ASEAN and steer regional order according to their perceived interests and relative military superiority. This book embraces these contradictory trends as a foundation of analysis and accepts that disorder can also be re-described from the perspective of studied detachment as polycentric order.

Asia is challenged by a number of non-traditional security issues including the foodenergywater nexus, climate change, transnational crime, terrorism, disaster relief and economic performance. This volume categorizes and clarifies some key emerging issues in the area and looks at their interconnectedness and implications.The essays explore how non-traditional issues can manifest as security challenges, and the role of the state and military in dealing with these. Issue-based and area-specific, they rely on facts and interpretation of data, avoiding alarmist predictions. A nuanced and analytical approach into an uncharted area, this book will be essential for policymakers, researchers and students of security and strategic studies, foreign policy, sociology and political economy, as well as the general readers.

This new textbook gathers an international roster of top security studies scholars to provide an overview of Asia-Pacific’s international relations and pressing contemporary security issues. It is a suitable introduction for undergraduate and masters students' use in international relations and security studies courses. Merging a strong theoretical component with rich contemporary and historical empirical examples, Asia-Pacific Security examines the region's key players and challenges as well as a spectrum of proposed solutions for improving regional stability. Major topics include in-depth looks at the United States' relationship with China; Security concerns presented by small and microstates, the region's largest group of nations; threats posed by terrorism and insurgency; the region's accelerating arms race and the potential for an Asian war; the possible roles of multilateralism, security communities, and human security as part of solutions to regional problems.