Conflict Prevention And Management In Northeast Asia

Two of the world’s most dangerous flashpoints, this edited volume with contributions by leading scholars offers a comprehensive evaluation and comparison of approaches to conflict management and prevention on the Korean Peninsula and in the Taiwan Strait. The consequences of any escalation of these two conflicts and the difficulties in resolving them necessitate a fresh look at designing new strategies to prevent and contain conflict as well as highlighting the limitations of existing measures. Presenting both a theoretical and practical examination of conflict prevention and management, the volume provides a comparative analysis of the Korean Peninsula and the Taiwan Strait-identifying lessons that could be transferred between the two cases but also the obstacles to this. The experiences of other regions and the role of third parties are also examined. This is a valuable addition to the literature for students of peace and conflict studies as well as policy-makers with an interest in Northeast Asia.

This book is based on discussions from the Asian Regional Consultation on Social Cohesion and Conflict Management that was sponsored by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. Participants, speaking in their personal capacity, included representatives from government, civil society, and donor organisations. The papers included in this volume cite a multiplicity of traditional obstacles to social cohesion and integration in the region, ranging from xenophobic nationalism to poverty, socioeconomic disparities, gender inequality, and ethnic, religious, and cultural discrimination.

Sino-Japanese relations are crucial for the entire East Asian region and beyond. With both countries among the five biggest economies in the world, and being highly interdependent, the bilateral relationship is of key importance not only for economic cooperation and prosperity in the region but in a larger global perspective. Moreover, Sino-Japanese political and military relations are central to the regional security of Northeast Asia. Any deterioration in relations has the potential to generate conflicts with far-reaching consequences. Accordingly, conflict prevention and conflict management in Sino-Japanese relations are of vital concern to the international community. In the past decade, however, the Sino-Japanese relationship has been increasingly marked by political strife and tension. While this has not escalated into military conflict and in spite of changes with the emergence of a new leader, Yasuo Fukuda, in Japan and a political reshuffle at the 17th Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in 2007, future developments are difficult to predict. Historical grievances and differing interpretations thereof play a large role in sustaining political tensions, which are reinforced by mutually negative perceptions at a grassroots level and a noticeable lack of trust. Japan’s occupation of parts of China in the first half of the 20th century and according to Chinese a failure by Japan to issue an apology remain a key obstacle to any improvement in relations. Tensions over contemporary issues have strong historical linkages and it is clear that problematic political relations have sub-optimized the economic potential between the two countries as well as heightened suspicions of each other’s military ambitions. More positively, business communities in both China and Japan have been pro-active in advocating improved cooperation and also a large majority of the ruling elite are eager to improve relations. Given the complex history and current power relations between the two countries, cultivating such will by no means be an easy task. Nevertheless, the authors hope that this book will help further understanding of Sino-Japanese relations and so contribute towards the development of mutually advantageous relations – a necessity in today’s world order.

Third in an acclaimed series, Searching for Peace in Asia Pacific offers critical background information, up-to-date surveys of the conflicts in Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific, and a directory of some 400 organizations working in the field of conflict prevention and peace-building in the Asia Pacific region. The authors provide detailed, objective descriptions of ongoing activities, as well as assessments of the prospects for conflict resolution.

conflict management in the Asia Pacific Assumptions and Approaches in Diverse Cultures Research-based and action-oriented, this book aims to give both a conceptual understanding of conflict management and practical guidelines to managing conflict in the Asia Pacific. It describes the various assumptions, expectations and values of Asia Pacific workers and how they deal with their conflicts. The book's central theme is on doing business internationally and managing conflict with different peoples and countries in the region. It describes how each country handles conflict in the workplace and how other countries can work with them effectively and constructively at various levels of management. The authors define the attitudes, assumptions and self-perceptions which shape a country's approach to conflict. These self-perceptions can have a major impact on conflict management especially when dealing with people from other countries. The contributors of all chapters draw upon a wide range of disciplines to document the conflict beliefs of people in their country. In addition to cross-cultural and other behavioral studies, they use literature and history to identify how people in their country think about themselves and their neighbors. They also refer to case studies where expectations get in the way, how expectations help conflict management, and how people overcome interfering expectations to forge successful business alliances.

This book analyses four major long-standing and intractable conflicts in the Asia-Pacific region (the Korean Peninsula; the Taiwan Strait; the South China Sea (Spratly Islands); and India-Pakistan), and aims to identify the mechanisms used to manage these conflicts. International Conflict in the Asia-Pacific brings together in one volume four major international conflicts that have shaped the region, and studies how they evolved and how best to manage them. The book seeks to find a pattern common to the four conflicts and their management as well as taking note of variations among them, hereby aiming to establish what might be called the 'Asia-Pacific way of managing intractable conflicts'. This book will of much interest to students of international conflict management, Asian politics, security studies and IR in general. Jacob Bercovitch is Professor of International Relations in the Political Science Department at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. Widely regarded as one of the most influential scholars in the field of international conflict resolution, he is author of more than 15 books and numerous articles. Mikio Oishi is a Visiting Fellow with the National Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies (NCPACS), University of Otago and a Research Fellow with Political Science Programme of University of Canterbury.