Elusive Balances

Prashanth Parameswaran

ISBN 10: 9811666148 / ISBN 13: 9789811666148

Published by Springer Nature Singapore, Springer Nature Singapore Jan 2023, 2023

About this Item

Neuware -This book undertakes an in-depth examination of the dynamics of commitment in U.S.-Southeast Asia strategy. Drawing on cases including the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and Washington¿s pivot to Asia amid Chinäs growing regional role, it constructs an original balance of commitment model to explain continuity and change in U.S.-Southeast Asia policy. Balance of commitment goes beyond balance of power approaches to explains how translating Southeast Asiäs importance in U.S. thinking into actual commitments has proven challenging for policymakers as it requires simultaneously calibrating adjustments to power shifts, threat perceptions and resource extraction.The book applies the balance of commitment approach to several practical case studies, based on hundreds of conversations with policymakers and experts in the United States and Southeast Asia, personal experiences across nearly two decades and primary and secondary source material across a half-century. The findings suggest that the challenges of U.S. commitment to the region are rooted not simply in differences between administrations or divergences in outlook between Washington and regional capitals, but tough balancing acts for U.S. policymakers in domestic politics and wider foreign policy. As such, shaping U.S. strategy in Southeast Asia and calibrating and sustaining commitment requires not just appreciating Southeast Asiäs significance, but committing to the region in ways that manage structural aspects of U.S. thinking, capabilities and resourcing.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 228 pp. Englisch.

Seller Inventory # 9789811666148

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Elusive Balances
• Publisher: Springer Nature Singapore, Springer Nature Singapore Jan 2023
• Publication Date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 9811666148
• ISBN 13: 9789811666148
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 210W x 148H x 13D millimeters 210 millimeters width by 148 millimeters height by 13 millimeters depth
• Weight: 301 grams

About this title

Synopsis

This book undertakes an in-depth examination of the dynamics of commitment in U.S.-Southeast Asia strategy. Drawing on cases including the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and Washington’s pivot to Asia amid China’s growing regional role, it constructs an original balance of commitment model to explain continuity and change in U.S.-Southeast Asia policy. Balance of commitment goes beyond balance of power approaches to explains how translating Southeast Asia’s importance in U.S. thinking into actual commitments has proven challenging for policymakers as it requires simultaneously calibrating adjustments to power shifts, threat perceptions and resource extraction. 

 

The book applies the balance of commitment approach to several practical case studies, based on hundreds of conversations with policymakers and experts in the United States and Southeast Asia, personal experiences across nearly two decades and primary and secondary source material across a half-century. The findings suggest that the challenges of U.S. commitment to the region are rooted not simply in differences between administrations or divergences in outlook between Washington and regional capitals, but tough balancing acts for U.S. policymakers in domestic politics and wider foreign policy. As such, shaping U.S. strategy in Southeast Asia and calibrating and sustaining commitment requires not just appreciating Southeast Asia’s significance, but committing to the region in ways that manage structural aspects of U.S. thinking, capabilities and resourcing.

About the Author

Dr. Prashanth Parameswaran is an analyst and educator focused on Southeast Asia, politics and security issues in the Asia-Pacific and U.S. foreign policy in the region. He is currently a fellow at the Asia Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars based in Washington, D.C. and a senior columnist at The Diplomat, one of Asia’s leading current affairs magazines. A political scientist by training, he has previously held roles linked to think tanks, media, business, and government, conducting field research, consulting, writing and teaching on these issues for nearly two decades and widely publishing policy insights, research and commentary in the United States and in Southeast Asia.