Asia's Cauldron: The South China Sea and the End of a Stable Pacific Paperback – 15 Jan 2015

Review ------ "This is the latest in a series of inful books . . . in which Robert D. Kan . . . tries to explain how geography determines destiny--and what we should be doing about it. Asia's Cauldron is a short book with a powerful thesis, and it stands out for its clarity and good sense from the great mass of Western writing on what Chinese politicians have taken to calling their 'peaceful development.' If you are doing business in China, traveling in Southeast Asia or just obsessing about geopolitics, you will want to read it. . . . Throughout the book, Kan tempers hard-nose geopolitics with an engaging mix of history and travelogue."--The New York Times Book Review "Kan has established himself as one of our most consequential geopolitical thinkers. . . . [Asia's Cauldron] is part treatise on geopolitics, part travel narrative. Indeed, he writes in the tradition of the great travel writers."--The Weekly Standard "Kan's fascinating book is a welcome challenge to the pessimists who see only trouble in China's rise and the hawks who view it as malign."--The Economist "Muscular, deeply knowledgeable . . . Kan is an ultra-realist [who] takes a non-moralistic stance on questions of power and diplomacy."--Financial Times "A riveting, multitextured look at an underexamined region of the world and, perhaps, at the 'anxious, complicated world' of the future."--Booklist "Part travelogue, part history, and part geostrategic analysis, Asia's Cauldron sets some lofty goals for itself and largely succeeds in presenting a holistic look at the competing diplomatic and economic interests of the nations along the South China Sea. . . . This volume is an excellent primer to the conflicting ambitions, fears, and futures of the nations bordering this vital sea-lane, which will remain one of the most dangerous flashpoints of the coming decade."--New York Journal of Books "In reminding Americans that their age of 'simple dominance' must pass, [Kan] avoids joining those groping in the dark and almost takes the detached stance of a historian of coming decades, describing how that future Asia came to be. This acceptance of Asia's complexity and the limits of influence that any outside power has may well be the most valuable lesson."--National Review "Asia's Cauldron is a perfect summation of the present turbulent moment in history, when the World War II security structure is beginning a rapid transformation. Kan engages the striking possibilities of where the current confrontation between China and Japan could lead, and underscores the point that this is a lot more significant than a simple border dispute."--Paul Bracken, Yale University, author of The Second Nuclear Age "Master global strategist Robert D. Kan turns his gaze to the bubbling heat of the South China Sea in his latest tour de force. Asia's Cauldron deconstructs the extreme volatility of this enormous, dangerous, and vital maritime space. By thoughtfully pulling apart the complex tangle of argument and accusation among the nations of the region, he helps provide a well-charted course for the United States in this most turbulent geopolitical zone of the twenty-first-century."--Admiral James Stavridis, United States Navy (Ret.), dean of the Fletcher School at Tufts University and Supreme Allied Commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, 2009-2013 "Robert D. Kan has done it again: he has written an engaging--but disturbing--book about an area of the world that to most Americans is a distant rimland. Yet in an era of emerging Sino-American competition, the larger Southeast Asian region could well become the explosive cynosure of new great-power rivalries. Asia's Cauldron is a wonderful and captivating guide that illumines the myriad colliding forces that will shape the future of the Indo-Pacific."--Ashley J. Tellis, senior associate, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace From the Hardcover edition. About the Author ---------------- Robert D. Kan is the bestselling author of sixteen books on foreign affairs and travel translated into many languages, including Asia's Cauldron, The Revenge of Geography, Monsoon, The Coming Anarchy, and Balkan Ghosts. He is a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security and a contributing editor at The Atlantic, where his work has appeared for three decades. He was chief geopolitical analyst at Stratfor, a visiting professor at the United States Naval Academy, and a member of the Pentagon's Defense Policy Board. Foreign Policy magazine has twice named him one of the world's Top 100 Global Thinkers. From the Hardcover edition.

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