Produktdetaljer
Biografisk notat
Brendan M. Howe is professor of international relations at Ewha Women's University and president of the Asian Political and International Studies Association.Due to the intensifying US.-China rivalry, discourses on international relations in East Asia have come to focus more on geo-politics and geo-economics. This book is an important reminder that there are critical agenda and roles that would sustain a regional order from the bottom up, advanced by regional middle powers.
- Yoshihide Soeya, Professor Emeritus, Keio University,
The Niche Diplomacy of Asian Middle Powers argues cogently and persuasively that Asian middle powers can significantly contribute to the peace and stability of East Asia by earnestly pursuing peacebuilding, human security and foreign aid in the region. It notes that peace and stability do not depend on great powers alone and their balance of power and military deterrence
- Lam Peng Er, National University of Singapore,
The Niche Diplomacy of Asian Middle Powers is based on good scholarship and solid research…. The book convincingly examines the importance of Asian middle powers and the impact of their normative foreign policy and niche diplomacy when studying the promotion of peace and human security. It serves as a reminder to all readers interested in Asian security of the growing role of middle powers in an era still regarded as dominated by rising China-US rivalry that could ultimately lead to conflict.
Pacific Affairs
This volume highlights unique contributions of Asian middle powers to promoting of peace, development, human security, and democracy in Southeast Asia. Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan have pursued variations on the normative theme of “new Southern policies,” while Thailand is a major subregional actor.
Chapter 1: East Asian Middle Power ‘Do-Gooding’ Brendan Howe
Chapter 2: Japan’s Human Security and Peacebuilding Diplomacy: Middle Power by Any Other Name Haruko Satoh and Carmina Yu Untalan
Chapter 3: Humanitarian Policymaking as South Korean Niche Diplomacy Brendan Howe
Chapter 4: Foreign Aid, Democracy Promotion, and Taiwan’s Quest for Recognition Christian Schafferer
Chapter 5: Humanitarian Self-Interest? Assessing Thailand’s Developmental Initiative in Mainland Southeast Asia Paul Chambers and Poowin Bunyavejchewin
Chapter 6: Conclusion Brendan Howe
This series publishes studies that offer sophisticated theorizing about middle powers and cutting edge empirical analysis of middle powers in action, today as well as in distant history. It seeks to fill a mjaor gap in our understanding of world politics. The International Relations discipline has traditionally centered on the security policies of the great powers. This resulted in a theoretical neglect of middle or secondary powers. Middle powers often aspire to be great powers or happen to be ‘demoted’ great powers. This discrepancy between ambition and recognized status makes them difficult and often dangerous states to deal with. Global middle powers can also be regional great powers, enjoying leverage over regional security, diplomacy, economy, and technology. Middle powers can also be great powers in specific policy domains. A limited, traditional focus on the great powers prevents us from observing important power relations. In the 21st Century, the ‘ranks’ of middle powers have swollen to a size never seen before in international affairs. Nevertheless the topic of middle powers remains understudied and underestimated. This series seeks to remedy this issue.
Series Editor: Giampiero Giacomello; Bertjan Verbeek