Regional hegemons : threat perception and strategic response : Panel on "Threat perception and strategic response of the regional powers" : Annual conference : Papers

The bitter U.S. experience in Vietnam and the pain inflicted on theSoviet Union by its Afghanistan adventure have caused Washington andMoscow to rethink the costs and benefits of unilateral military interventionon behalf of threatened clients, especially in the third world. Also, asthe Cold War winds down, the crusading spirit that has driven superpowercompetition since the end of World War II appears increasingly anachronistic.Expenditures by the superpowers in pursuit of military superiority,or even to ensure parity, are now criticized for the security theydo not provide or for detracting from economic growth. The lattercriticism has grown in importance as the U.S. economy has confrontednew challenges from Japan and Germany and as the Soviet economystruggles to avoid collapse. Thus when Saddam Hussein's August 1990invasion of Kuwait challenged the political and economic status quo inthe oil-rich Middle East, neither the United States nor the Soviet Unionresponded unilaterally. Cooperatively they crafted an international consensusto confront the challenge. The declining influence of the superpowers in key regions of the world has permitted states such as Israel, in the Middle East and India, in South Asia, to seek geopolitical influence. This study explores the ways in which aspiring regional hegemons view threats to their aspirations and respond to these threats. The contributors analyze important t This book focuses on a distinctive kind of regional international system, one possessing a powerful state with aspirations of regional hegemony. It discusses how powerful states desirous of special influence within a subordinate state system respond toward threats to their hegemonic positions.