Author: Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan
Publisher: Rupa
Year: 2009
Language: English
Pages: 112
ISBN/UPC (if available): 9788129115508
Description
Uncertain Eagle: US Military Strategy in Asia is a book that has essentially looked into the military strategy of the United States in Asia and how the changing strategies might impact on India and other countries in Asia. While the US continues to be the sole superpower, major rising powers such as China, Russia, Japan and India have begun to exert greater influence and challenge the United States in Asia as well as globally.
However, rising powers are not the only American concern. Other challenges include terrorism threat from al-Qaeda and its associates, threat of nuclear proliferation and ‘loose nukes’ in Iran, North Korea, and even Pakistan. Thus the US strategy has to respond to a wide range of perceived threats. Whether the US will remain an active player in the Asian military rivalries or choose to be an offshore balancer will be a key question. These choices have implication for both the Asian stability and the Indian security.
The United States’ commitment to and involvement in the Asia-Pacific in the coming decades is a reality that Washington has firmly come to grips with, given the nature of emerging threats and challenges that it faces. The long-team security of the region will certainly depend on the US continuing to extend its deterrence mechanism, because if US allies as well as friends are not convinced of US commitment, a possibility of Japan and even South Korea going nuclear cannot be ruled out.
Contents
Acknowledgements
1. Introduction
2. US Security Environment
3. US Responses to Emerging Threats and Challenges
4. Current Debates on the US Military Strategies
5. Nuclear Weapons in the US Military Strategy
6. Conclusion
Endnotes
List of Acronyms
Index