The East Asian Peace : Conflict Prevention and Informal Peacebuilding

Using a case study based approach, Weissmann analyses the post-Cold War East Asian security setting to demonstrate why there is a paradoxical inter-state peace. He points out processes that have been important for the creation of a continuing relative peace in East Asia, as well as conflict prevention and peacebuilding mechanisms. The East Asian peace is a mystery of the modern age. To many theorists and analysts alike, the post-Cold War calm has been seen as a temporary anomaly, potential military conflicts dominating predictions for the future. Despite this, two decades have passed in which a relative peace has been sustained and it is time to question existing forecasts. Comparing the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea and the Korean Nuclear conflict, the author explores the informal processes that can help explain the persistence of peace, leading to hope for a future era of stability Front Matter....Pages i-xiv Introduction: The Paradox of the East Asian Peace....Pages 1-19 Front Matter....Pages 21-21 Review of the Field and Theoretical Framework....Pages 23-50 Front Matter....Pages 51-51 Mainland China-Taiwan Relations and the Taiwan Issue....Pages 53-86 The South China Sea and Sino-ASEAN Relations....Pages 87-114 The Korean Nuclear Conflict....Pages 115-144 Front Matter....Pages 145-145 Conclusion: Understanding the East Asian Peace....Pages 147-173 Back Matter....Pages 174-219