At the latest since 9/11 the phenomenon of the «asymmetry» or, more common, the «asymmetric warfare» has become a subject within International Relations. So, highly unequal parties face each other in asymmetric warfare, with one of them trying to inflict major damage on the other by making only a minor effort. Since the time when interstate wars started to disappear, the traditional ideas of wars have become useless and obsolete as a basis for political decision-making. For several years policy-makers, officials, and writers on defence and foreign policy have employed the terms «asymmetric» or «asymmetry» to characterize everything from the nature of the threats we face to the nature of war and beyond. Labelling current and future threats as «asymmetric» diminishes our understanding of the threat environment. In the age of globalization, of new threats, new and even revolutionary technologies, and new forms of military operations, the requirement for clear thinking increases commensurately. Authors from four continents will follow this new way of thinking.

The book analyzes the concept of asymmetry in international relations on the example of United States and Mexico. This bilateral relation is introduced within wider historical, economic and political context. It also includes a case study on perceptions of Mexico in U.S. media. The study focuses on critical issues in bilateral relations within the context of asymmetric relations. Economic integration under North American Free Trade Agreement, extensive migration from Mexico to the U.S. and the issue of drug-trafficking and drug-control efforts are analyzed in this respect. The concluding chapter uses the findings to conceptualize asymmetric relations and presents possible applications of the key findings to complex bilateral issues.

This new edition of the volume is presented on the wave of the success which had its first edition (2003). It is entirely updated to the current situation of the disciplines covered, and expanded with particular regard to the new missions, that have become the main challenge for the armed forces in these first decades of the new millennium, with new insights to technological development toward so-called cyborg warriors, new forms of leadership and changes in soldier's identity and organisational culture. It is compiled of documents coming from various researchers at universities around the world as well as military officers devoted to the sector of study. Covered in this volume is a historical excursus of studies prior to contemporary research, interpretive models and theoretical approaches developed specifically for this topic, civic-military relations including issues surrounding democratic control of the armed forces, military culture, professional training, conditions and problems of minorities in the armed forces, an examination of the structural change within the military over the years including new duties and functions following the Cold War.

Become a US trivia whiz with this crash course through four centuries of change, rebellion, conflict, and triumph in the United States. Where was America’s lost colony? What tipped the balance in the Civil War? Were there second thoughts about dropping the atomic bomb? Acclaimed historian Dan Roberts—host of radio’s A Moment in Time—takes readers on a bite-sized romp through five-hundred years of American history. With just one minute a day, you can master all the essential facts of America's founding, Civil War, world conflicts, domestic transformations, and more. Packed with full-color photographs, paintings, and lively mini essays, Master American History in 1 Minute a Day is the perfect armchair companion for history lovers and history learners alike.

This book is a critical exploration of the war on terror from the prism of armed drones and globalization. It is particularly focused on the United States’ use of the drones, and the systemic dysfunctions that globalization has caused to international political economy and national security, creating backlash in which the desirability of globalization is not only increasingly questioned, but the resultant dissension about its desirability appears increasingly militating against the international consensus needed to fight the war on terror. To underline the controversial nature of the war on terror and the pragmatic weapon (armed drones) fashioned for its prosecution, some of the elements of this controversy have been interrogated in this book. They include, amongst others, the doubt over whether the war should have been declared in the first place because terrorist attacks hardly meet the United Nations’ casus belli – an armed attack. There are critics, as highlighted in this book, who believe that the war on terror is not an armed conflict properly so called, and, thus, remains only a law enforcement issue. The United States and all the states taking part in the war on terror are obligated to observe International Humanitarian Law (IHL). It is within this context of IHL that this book appraises the drone as a weapon of engagement, discussing such issues as personality and signature strikes as well as the implications of the deployment of spies as drone strikers rather than the Defence Department, the members of the U.S armed forces. This book will be of value to researchers, academics, policymakers, professionals, and students in the fields of security studies, terrorism, the law of armed conflict, international humanitarian law, and international politics.

As the aspirations of the two rising Asian powers collide, the China-India rivalry is likely to shape twenty-first-century international politics in the region and far beyond. This volume by T.V. Paul and an international group of leading scholars examines whether the rivalry between the two countries that began in the 1950s will intensify or dissipate in the twenty-first century. The China-India relationship is important to analyze because past experience has shown that when two rising great powers share a border, the relationship is volatile and potentially dangerous. India and China’s relationship faces a number of challenges, including multiple border disputes that periodically flare up, division over the status of Tibet and the Dalai Lama, the strategic challenge to India posed by China's close relationship with Pakistan, the Chinese navy's greater presence in the Indian Ocean, and the two states’ competition for natural resources. Despite these irritants, however, both countries agree on issues such as global financial reforms and climate change and have much to gain from increasing trade and investment, so there are reasons for optimism as well as pessimism. The contributors to this volume answer the following questions: What explains the peculiar contours of this rivalry? What influence does accelerated globalization, especially increased trade and investment, have on this rivalry? What impact do US-China competition and China’s expanding navy have on this rivalry? Under what conditions will it escalate or end? The China-India Rivalry in the Globalization Era will be of great interest to students, scholars, and policymakers concerned with Indian and Chinese foreign policy and Asian security.

This book examines the post Cold War security environment and how the U.S. has learned to wage war in this complex assymetrical world of conflict.

China Among Unequals presents asymmetry theory, a new paradigm for the study of international relations, derived from China's relationships with its neighbors and the world. The first collection of its kind, it brings together key writings on the theory and its applications to China's basic foreign policy, particularly towards the United States and the rest of Asia.Starting with an exploration of the general theory of asymmetry, with particular attention given to such topics as human rights, soft power, regionalism, and asymmetric wars, the book then moves on to the fundamentals of China's external relations, looking at the complexities created by its scale and broad range of neighbors. Traditional imperial relationships are analyzed, as well as China's more recent emphasis on multipolarity. The third section deals with US-China ties -China's most important relationship, and the only one in which it is in the more vulnerable position. The final section treats in detail the relationships between China and its Asian neighbors, including Southeast Asia and the complicated multilateral situations of Korea and Taiwan.

Working from a unique non-U.S. perspective, this market-leading text provides a coherent, accessible, and engaging introduction to the globalization of world politics. Now in its sixth edition, The Globalization of World Politics has been fully revised and updated in light of recent developments in world politics. FEATURES * Presents contributions from an impressive line-up of international experts, each of whom provides accessible but stimulating insights into history, theory, structures, processes, and other key issues in the field * Offers a visually appealing full-color interior * Provides a strong pedagogical program that includes numerous boxes, figures, tables, maps, questions, lively examples, and case studies

Transatlantic security cooperation has developed into a hybrid object. This necessitates a look beyond the two institutional cornerstones of cooperation, NATO and the bilateral EU-US relationship. The book addresses the historical and current conceptions of transatlantic security relations and analyzes new 'platforms' for cooperation such as the EU-3 initiative in regard to Iran, various forms of EU-NATO cooperation as well as the Middle East Quartet. The contributors examine the member states' perspective on the relationship and discuss some new areas for action including a CFSP caucus in NATO, a reversed Berlin-plus agreement, a «Joint Transatlantic Nation-Building Task Force», and common criteria for stability operations on both sides of the Atlantic. The message throughout the book: there is no 'master plan' for strengthening transatlantic relations, but strong reasons to move forward with a sense of pragmatism.