Asian Politics
When Chen Shui-bian, Taiwan's first non-Kuomintang president, left office in 2008, his tenure was widely considered a disappointment. More recent events, however, suggest the need for a More >
Confounding expectations, Taiwan reduced its military spending for many years even as its sole adversary, the People's Republic of China, modernized its military and significantly More >
How did Taiwan transform itself from a "least developed country" into an Asian Tiger? How did it become a successful, multiparty democracy after years of authoritarian rule? Why do More >
Taiwan's economic and political transformation was once considered a model for developing nations, but in recent decades, the momentum has stalled. Why? Cal Clark and Alexander Tan More >
The prospects for Thailand's emergence as a democracy seemed strong in the 1990s. Yet, as most recently demonstrated by military coups in 2006 and 2014, that hasn't happened. Why More >
Focusing on the nexus between global, regional, and national dynamics in Southeast Asia, Jörn Dosch explores the profound political changes that have occurred in recent years both More >
Refuting criticisms that call into question the effectiveness, and even the purpose, of ASEAN, Shaun Narine traces the organization's political and economic development and explores its More >
Driven by foreign investments and exports, the economies of many East Asian countries have seen dramatic growth—but North Korea has lagged behind. Why? What are the country's More >
Can China's remarkable, rapid emergence as a large economy and technological power be attributed to specific policies, and more generally to a Chinese program of industrial policy? More More >
Charles Buxton traces the gradual establishment of the civil society sector in the five former Soviet republics of Central Asia, countries that find themselves today negotiating a More >
How can the United States and South Korea best cooperate to address new security challenges? Can the US-ROK alliance serve to advance South Korea's interests and at the same time help More >
Can the Vietnamese military, which decades ago defeated the French, the Americans, and the Chinese, move away from its tradition of "people's war" to adapt to both the More >
Recent years have seen dramatic changes in the nature, direction, and impact of Turkey's foreign relations in its neighborhood—a region that encompasses Europe, the Middle East, More >
Understanding Contemporary Asia Pacific provides a comprehensive introduction to one of the most complex and rapidly changing regions in the world today. This thoroughly revised new More >
China today bears little resemblance to the country introduced in the first edition of Understanding Contemporary China, published nearly two decades ago. Even in just the past five years, More >
