First Published in 1992. This volume focuses upon the synergy between geography and international politics. A new geopolitics is developed bringing together the insights of political geography and international relations. In each chapter, leading scholars focus on the spatial context through which contemporary world politics are conducted. War, conflict, cooperation, state building and power are examined in a geopolitical context.

Intensifying geopolitical rivalries, rising defence spending and the proliferation of the latest military technology across Asia suggest that the region is set for a prolonged period of strategic contestation. None of the three competing visions for the future of Asian order – a US-led ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’, a Chinese-centred order, or the ASEAN-inspired ‘Indo-Pacific Outlook’ – is likely to prevail in the short to medium term. In the absence of a new framework, the risk of open conflict is heightened, and along with it the need for effective mechanisms to maintain peace and stability. As Asia’s leaders seek to rebuild their economies and societies in the wake of COVID-19, they would do well to reflect upon the lessons offered by the pandemic and their applicability in the strategic realm. The societies that have navigated the crisis most effectively have been able to do so by putting in place stringent protective measures. Crisis-management and -avoidance mechanisms – and even, in the longer term, wider arms control – can be seen as the strategic equivalent of such measures, and as such they should be pursued with urgency in Asia to reduce the risks of an even greater calamity.

The second background report in the New Energy, New Geopolitics series, this report evaluates the geopolitical and national security impacts of the dramatic increase in the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States. It examines how the unconventional energy trend has already impacted U.S. national security and geopolitics and then posits several possible energy futures that could emerge from the unconventional revolution. This report pairs with the original "New Energy, New Geopolitics" report and two other background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Balancing Stability and Leverage New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 1: Energy Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 3: Scenarios, Strategies, and Pathways

Few relationships have been as misunderstood as the "strategic partnership" between Russia and China. Official rhetoric portrays it as the very model of international cooperation: Moscow and Beijing claim that ties are closer and warmer than at any time in history. In reality, however, the picture is highly ambiguous. While both sides are committed to multifaceted engagement, cooperation is complicated by historical suspicions, cultural prejudices, geopolitical rivalries, and competing priorities. For Russia, China is at once the focus of a genuine convergence of interests and the greatest long-term threat to its national security. For China, Russia is a key supplier of energy and weapons, but is frequently dismissed as a self-important power whose rhetoric far outstrips its real influence. A xis of Convenience cuts through the mythmaking and examines the Sino-Russian partnership on its own merits. It steers between the overblown interpretation of an anti-Western (particularly, anti-American) alliance and the complacent assumption that past animosities and competing agendas must always divide the two nations. Their relationship reflects a new geopolitics, one that eschews formal alliances in favor of more flexible and opportunistic arrangements. Ultimately, it is an axis of convenience driven by cold-eyed perceptions of the national interest. In evaluating the current state and future prospects of the relationship, Bobo Lo assesses its impact on the evolving strategic environments in Central and East Asia. He also analyzes the global implications of rapprochement between Moscow and Beijing, focusing in particular on the geopolitics of energy and Russia-China-U.S. triangularism.

This report evaluates the energy and geopolitical shifts that have arisen from the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States. It begins by assessing how much the unconventional energy trend has already impacted energy, geopolitics, and national security. The report then posits several possible energy futures that could emerge from the unconventionals revolution. Finally, it offers views on the major geostrategic question: how will the United States seek to utilize this, so far, domestic resource trend, and given the range of potential future energy outcomes, what might the geopolitical and national security implications be. This report pairs with three background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 1: Energy Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 2: Geopolitical and National Security Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 3: Scenarios, Strategies, and Pathways

examines the rise of terrorism in its broader geopolitical context outlines the policy options available to Western states in the face of complex new terrorism threats authors are a leading scholar and a poliymaker, respectively will be of much interest to students of terrorism, strategic studies, foreign policy, Middle Eastern politics and IR in general

In the last decade Russia has searched for new alternative policies to compensate for its political deficiencies and to balance its rivals in one of the key areas of the approaching geopolitical rivalry, the sea. The Russian assertiveness seen in the Black Sea-Mediterranean basin has recently been a real concern for the international community. In the six chapters of this book, contributors explain Moscow’s newly perceived assertive foreign and security behavior in the Black Sea and Mediterranean basin from their own perspectives, and reach a conclusion about the limits and validity of this new Russian ascendance in the region.

Under the ambitious leadership of President Xi Jinping, China is zealously transforming its wealth and economic power into potent tools of global political influence. But China's foreign policy initiatives, even the vaunted "Belt and Road," will be shaped and redefined as they confront theground realities of local and regional politics outside China. In China's Western Horizon, Daniel S. Markey, a scholar of international relations and former member of the U.S. State Department's policy planning staff, previews how China's efforts are likely to play out in its own "backyard:" theswath of Eurasia that includes South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East. Drawing from his extensive interviews, travels, and historical research, Markey describes how perceptions of China vary widely within states like Pakistan, Kazakhstan, and Iran.The region's powerful and privileged groups often expect to profit from their connections to China, while others fear commercial and political losses. Similarly, statesmen across Eurasia are scrambling to harness China's energy purchases, arms sales, and infrastructure investments as a means tooutdo their strategic competitors, like India and Saudi Arabia, while negotiating relations with Russia and America. On balance, Markey anticipates that China's deepening involvement will play to the advantage of regional strongmen and exacerbate the political tensions within and among Eurasianstates. To make the most of America's limited influence in China's backyard (and elsewhere), he argues that U.S. policymakers should pursue a selective and localized strategy to serve America's aims in Eurasia and to better compete with China over the long run.

This book focuses on the newly independent Muslim republics of the former Soviet Union in Central Asia, especially Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Azerbaijan. It examines the recent economic and political developments in these states with reference to the lingering legacy of Tsarist Russian and Soviet rule, the resurgence of an Islamic political identity, the persistence of ethnic allegiances and rivalries, and the nascent democratic aspirations of their peoples.

This path-breaking study attempts to define a new international dimension to energy policy that takes account of the dramatic political changes since the oil crises of the 1970s. This 'new geopolitics of energy' is creative rather than defensive, aligned to market-oriented development rather than state management. But governments have a role in promoting stable international conditions for trade and investment in energy, which in turn contribute to wider political stability; the development of more widely acceptable options for nuclear power; coordinated international action to mitigate the risks of climate change and other environmental impacts. This book is invaluable reading for executives and analysts in the energy business, and for strategic thinkers who believe that broader policies should in keeping with current energy trends.