Regional Cooperation and Its Enemies in Northeast Asia: The Impact of Domestic Forces (Routledge Security in Asia Pacific Series)

Examining the prospects for building a regional community in Northeast Asia, this book considers the foreign policies of the individual states as well as the impact of domestic politics on the regionalist agenda. It outlines the emerging Northeast Asian community and the domestic requisites for its evolution and realization, and puts it in context by comparing the emerging community with Southeast Asia. The book investigates the attitudes of the key powers, including China, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Russia and the US, towards the ideal of greater regional cooperation, with particular emphasis on the implications of domestic factors in each country for regional dynamics. It explores the North Korean nuclear crisis, the continuing tensions over the Taiwan Straits, the impact of Sino-Japanese rivalry, the shift in stance of South Korea towards North Korea since 2001 and its implications for its relationship with the US, and Putin’s attempts to strengthen Russian influence in the region. It concludes by identifying the foremost dangers that risk obstructing greater regional cooperation, particularly the China-Japan rivalry, nationalist sentiments, territorial disputes and energy competition. Domestic Politics And Regional Cooperation In Southeast And Northeast Asia / Etel Solingen -- Envisioning A Northeast Asian Community : Regional And Domestic Factors To Consider / Haruki Wada -- Washington's Policies Toward North Korea And The Taiwan Strait : The Role Of Us Domestic Politics / Tun-jen Cheng -- The Two Koreas In Northeast Asia : Linkages Between Domestic, Inter-korean, And Regional Politics / Yong-pyo Hong -- The Transformation Of Chinese Foreign Policy / Lowell Dittmer -- The Fragility Of China's Regional Cooperation / Edward Friedman -- State Consolidation And Foreign Policy In Russia / Leszek Buszynski -- Mediating Geopolitics, Markets, And Regionalism : Domestic Politics In Japan's Post-cold War Relations With China / Peng Er Lam -- Transnational Cooperation Among Ngos In Northeast Asia : From Re-thinking Development Towards Re-thinking Security / Daehoon Lee. Edited By Edward Friedman And Sung Chull Kim. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Northeast Asia is a region of both extraordinary economic growth and dangerous tensions which could explode in war. This book examines how domestic politics in all the countries of the region - China, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, North Korea and South Korea and, of course, the USA - intensifies the forces of both mutually beneficial prosperity and also war-prone tensions. It goes on to provide policy suggestions for making the better prospects more likely and the worse outcomes less likely. The book, highlighting how domestic imperatives shape foreign policies, will be an important contribution to the literature on Northeast Asian regionalism and the prospects for its future development