Great power competition for overseas bases: The geopolitics of access diplomacy (Pergamon policy studies on security affairs)

Great Power Competition for Overseas Bases: The Geopolitics of Access Diplomacy explores the geopolitics of the major powers'overseas basing systems in relation to global strategies and changes in the international system in three fairly distinct phases: the interwar, early postwar, and recent postwar periods. This book links the great powers'competition for overseas bases to several streams of more or less contemporary international relations theory. This monograph consists of seven chapters and opens with an introduction to the diplomacy of basing access, followed by a discussion on the different types or purposes of basing access as they have evolved over the past several decades in response to changes in diplomacy and military technology. The major powers'overseas basing-access networks in the consecutive interwar, early postwar, and recent postwar periods are then reviewed, along with the earlier corpus of geopolitical theory, specifically as it relates to basing diplomacy. Emphasis is on the conflicting assumptions about what reciprocal strategic advantages and disadvantages inhere to the geographic positions of the United States and USSR. The final chapter considers a number of''functional''areas of world politics that are closely intertwined with basing diplomacy, and relates the competition for facilities to raw materials access, surrogate wars, strategic deterrence, arms control, balances of payments, arms sales and aid, alliances, and other such staple concerns of international relations. This book will be of interest to political scientists, military and government officials, diplomats, and policymakers. Great Power Competition for Overseas The Geopolitics of Access Diplomacy explores the geopolitics of the major powers' overseas basing systems in relation to global strategies and changes in the international system in three fairly distinct the interwar, early postwar, and recent postwar periods. This book links the great powers' competition for overseas bases to several streams of more or less contemporary international relations theory.This monograph consists of seven chapters and opens with an introduction to the diplomacy of basing access, followed by a discussion on the different types or purposes of basing access as they have evolved over the past several decades in response to changes in diplomacy and military technology. The major powers' overseas basing-access networks in the consecutive interwar, early postwar, and recent postwar periods are then reviewed, along with the earlier corpus of geopolitical theory, specifically as it relates to basing diplomacy. Emphasis is on the conflicting assumptions about what reciprocal strategic advantages and disadvantages inhere to the geographic positions of the United States and USSR. The final chapter considers a number of ""functional"" areas of world politics that are closely intertwined with basing diplomacy, and relates the competition for facilities to raw materials access, surrogate wars, strategic deterrence, arms control, balances of payments, arms sales and aid, alliances, and other such staple concerns of international relations.This book will be of interest to political scientists, military and government officials, diplomats, and policymakers. New surges of interest in geostrategic aspects of basing and "linkage politics" were generated by the U.S. arms resupply to Isreal in 1973 and Soviet armaments to Angola, Mozambique, Ethiopia, and Vietnam; Arab attempts to nudge the West out of Mediterranean and Persian Gulf bases and Soviet access problems to Egypt, Syria, Libya, Somalia, and Ethiopia; raw material sources and SALT verification needs; and "surrogate wars" and rescue missions. Harkavy seeks to tie different streams of contemporary international relations theory to great power competition for three-dimensional national security needs, such as new technologies and related defense needs for communications, deep ocean and space surveillance, seismological observations and air isotope sampling Content: Pergamon Titles of Related Interest , Page ii Related Journals , Page ii Front Matter , Page iii Copyright , Page iv Dedication , Page vi Acknowledgments , Pages vii-viii 1 - Introduction , Pages 1-13 2 - Forms and Functions of Overseas Bases , Pages 14-43 3 - Bases in the Interwar Period: The Heyday of Colonial Control , Pages 44-106 4 - Bases in the Early Postwar Period: Bipolarity and the Containment Rings , Pages 107-172 5 - Soviet and Western Basing Networks in the Modern Era: The Changing Strategic Map , Pages 173-269 6 - Basing and Geopolitical Theories , Pages 270-326 7 - Conclusion , Pages 327-348 Selected Bibliography , Pages 349-354 Index , Pages 355-361 About the Author , Page 363 1. Introduction -- 2. Forms And Functions Of Overseas Bases -- 3. Bases In The Interwar Period: The Heyday Of Colonial Control -- 4. Bases In The Early Postwar Period: Biopolarity And The Containment Ring -- 5. Soviet And Wester Basing Networks In The Modern Era The Changing Strategic Map -- 6. Basing And Geopolitical Theories -- 7. Conclusions -- Robert E. Harkavy. Includes Index. Bibliography: P. 349-354.