This edited volume examines the concept of overhangs or legacies or negative stereotypical images in international relations and their impact on bilateral relations between geographically proximate states in East Asia. The case studies chosen - Japan-Korea, Japan-China, Vietnam-China, Thailand-Myanmar and Thailand-Cambodia - demonstrate conclusively that bilateral overhangs or legacies have a significant impact on contemporary international relations. Such images are regularly replicated and stoked by a variety of constituencies including state agencies for their own selfish interests. The evidence also points to the fact that such bilateral relationships are relatively self-contained and often operate with their own dynamics. Powerful condensation symbols are appropriated to weave a story of the virtuous self and the stereotypical other. This negative image and its replication is important to an understanding of turbulent bilateral relations in East Asia and also helps to inform how such relations can be brought to an even keel.

"The central theme of this book is the utility of bilateralism and multilateralism in Southeast Asia international relations. The intention was to examine a sufficient number of empirical cases in the Southeast Asian region since the mid-1970's so as to establish a pattern of interactions informing a wider audience of interactions unique to the region. Through these case studies, we seek to identify how this pattern of interaction compares with similar experiences elsewhere vis-a-vis the theoretical underpinnings of multilateralism and bilateralism. Consequently, this book also examines the theoretical drift in international relations literature at the broadest level and the overall drift of Southeast Asian international relations between the nations themselves and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)."--P. xv.

It is well known that Taiwan and South Korea, both former Japanese colonies, achieved rapid growth and industrialization after 1960. The performance of former European and American colonies (Malaysia, Singapore, Burma, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, and the Philippines) has been less impressive. Some scholars have attributed the difference to better infrastructure and greater access to education in Japan’s colonies. Anne Booth examines and critiques such arguments in this ambitious comparative study of economic development in East and Southeast Asia from the beginning of the twentieth century until the 1960s. Booth takes an in-depth look at the nature and consequences of colonial policies for a wide range of factors, including the growth of export-oriented agriculture and the development of manufacturing industry. She evaluates the impact of colonial policies on the growth and diversification of the market economy and on the welfare of indigenous populations. Indicators such as educational enrollments, infant mortality rates, and crude death rates are used to compare living standards across East and Southeast Asia in the 1930s. Her analysis of the impact that Japan’s Greater Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere and later invasion and conquest had on the region and the living standards of its people leads to a discussion of the painful and protracted transition to independence following Japan’s defeat. Throughout Booth emphasizes the great variety of economic and social policies pursued by the various colonial governments and the diversity of outcomes. Lucidly and accessibly written, Colonial Legacies offers a balanced and elegantly nuanced exploration of a complex historical reality. It will be a lasting contribution to scholarship on the modern economic history of East and Southeast Asia and of special interest to those concerned with the dynamics of development and the history of colonial regimes.

The relations between ASEAN and China occupy a unique and important position in the foreign relations of the Asia-Pacific region. This volume investigates the impacts of global changes and regional challenges confronting the contemporary developments of China-ASEAN relations.

This book offers an analysis of the decolonisation process across three different regions around the world: Central America, Southeast Asia and the Caucasus. It explores how the nature of previous imperial systems shaped the nation states that were created in their stead. By outlining these contrasting historical trajectories, this short study argues that the stability of these nation states and their ability to cooperate with one another are dependent on the acceptance of the frontiers established by the previous imperial powers. It moves from Central America, left in the early nineteenth century without any clear borders and which has suffered much inter-state tension ever since, to Southeast Asia, whose clear colonial delineations have been accepted in the post-colonial order, and finally to the Caucasus where the arbitrary boundaries of the Soviet Republics have not easily translated into nation states. Offering a concise comparison of decolonisation in three regions, this book will be of particular interest to students of history, politics and international relations.

By looking back to understand the contemporary political and economic landscape of Southeast Asia, these essays shed light on how modern Southeast Asia has evolved. Special focus centres on US engagement with the region, by both governmental and non-governmental organisations.

Have you ever wondered about the Commonwealth or questioned what it has meant to Canada? If not, you are not alone. It has been a sparsely covered subject of Canadian history. Yet the Commonwealth was once, and can still be, an important part of Canadian foreign policy. To be so, however, it is important to understand what role Canada has traditionally played within this association of states. This is the purpose of this book: to explore how Canada has led within the Commonwealth as it has served its function in Canadian foreign policy. More importantly, through learning of Canadas role within this organization, we might better understand what future role the Commonwealth might perform for Canada, and a legacy will not be forgotten.

This book explores the ways that institutions play a role - or fail to - in Japanese and American approaches to regional governance in East Asia. It uses recent studies on the logic and dynamics of institutions to determine the logic of order within the East Asia region. The central focus is on bilateral and multilateral regional institutions.

This balanced, comprehensive guide to Southeast Asian politics offers a sensible but nondogmatic realist approach to the region's international relations. In this revised, second edition, Donald E. Weatherbee lucidly explains the dynamics of the Southeast Asian subsystem as a struggle for autonomy in pursuit of national interests. He explores three important questions, the answers to which will shape the future Southeast Asia. Will democratic regimes transform international relations in Southeast Asia? Will national leaders succeed in reinventing ASEAN as a more effective collaborative mechanism? Finally, how will the evolving Chinese position, balancing and perhaps displacing the United States as Asia's great power, affect Southeast Asia's struggle for autonomy?

In 1986, the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) adopted the Doi Moi (Renovation) policy at its sixth national congress, opening up a new chapter in the country's modern history. Under Doi Moi, Vietnam has undergone significant socio-economic, political and foreign policy reforms that have transformed the country in many meaningful ways. This edited volume aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the multiple aspects and transformations of Vietnam's foreign policy over the past thirty years. The book is divided into three sections. The first covers the broader framework of Vietnam's foreign policy making and the historical evolution of Vietnam's diplomacy under Doi Moi. The second examines Vietnam's bilateral relationships with its major partners, namely the United States, China, Japan, India, Russia, its smaller neighbours (Cambodia and Laos), and ASEAN. Finally, the book looks into two major issues in Vietnam's current foreign policy: the management of the South China Sea disputes and the international economic integration process. As the most informative, updated and comprehensive volume on Vietnam's foreign policy under Doi Moi, the book is a useful reference for academics, policymakers and students, as well as anyone interested in contemporary Vietnam in general and its foreign policy in particular.