The Soviet Union And Northeast Asia; Asian Policy: The New Soviet Challenge In The Pacific
These two monographs provide a good account of recent Soviet initiatives in East Asia. Ellison concludes that Gorbachev has demonstrated a clear understanding of past Soviet failings in the region and a good sense of the improvement that can be made. The Sino-Soviet summit is impressive evidence of the effectiveness of recent Soviet policies. Manning concludes that Moscow's newly asserted status as a Pacific power is not necessarily a loss for the United States, and that Washington should help define the terms of Soviet participation in the Pacific. Thus far, he contends, Washington has been too reactive and defensive in the Pacific, failing to offer its own agenda.
Related
Since the end of World War II, there have been three watersheds in Sino-Soviet relations. In February 1950, the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China formed an alliance against the West. In the late 1950s, there was the beginning of the historic split between them that transformed international politics. Then, in the early 1970s, there began the Sino-American rapprochement that, by the end of the decade, completely altered the strategic landscape and led to an incipient Chinese-American alliance against the Soviet Union.
Soviet options in East Asia are limited by the USSR's lack of economic influence, but Gorbachev's new flexible diplomacy has led to limited advances. Discusses current relations with China, Japan, and the two Koreas, noting that influence in the Pacific region's economy is likely to be marginal for the next few decades. Concludes that prospects are good for a reduction in tension in the region.
In the decades ahead, the center of the global HIV/AIDS pandemic is set to shift from Africa to Eurasia. The death toll in that region's three pivotal countries--Russia, India, and China--could be staggering. This will assuredly be a humanitarian tragedy, but it will be much more than that. The disease will alter the economic potential of the region's major states and the global balance of power. Moscow, New Delhi, and Beijing could take steps to mitigate the disaster--but so far they have not.

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