Strategic Cultures in the Asia-Pacific Region

It is widely recognized that the Asia-Pacific is an increasingly significant region in the development of world politics, and one undergoing profound change. In these circumstances, it is crucial that analyses of regional security contain the fullest possible understanding of the factors that shape the strategic attitudes and behaviour of the main actors. This book attempts to contribute to such an understanding by looking at the security problems and prospects of the countries of the region through the lens of strategic culture. A multinational and interdisciplinary group of contributors have written original essays seeking to provide the first comprehensive profile of the strategic cultures of the states of the region. `Strategic culture' consists of the traditional cultural, historical, political and societal factors that help shape the defence policies and strategic behaviour of countries. In addition to contributing to a better understanding of the security problems and prospects of the region, the book gives more empirical flesh to the developing concept of strategic culture and also relates it to the idea of conflict management as well as military strategy.