United States After The Cold War Security Policy In East Asia

In the post-Cold War era, U.S. has constantly adjusted its Asia-Pacific security strategy. George Bush administration once planned to withdraw troops from Asia-Pacific region. Along with the appearance of North Korean nuclear crisis in 1992, U.S. suspended in the withdrawal of the troops in South Korea, and readjusted the Asia-Pacific security strategy. These adjustments reflected that the George Bush administration attempted to transform the U.S. Regional security posture from"containment + deterrence"into"equilibrium + deterrence". The Asia-Pacific security strategy adjustments of the Clinton administration can be mainly expressed by its two Asia-Pacific security strategy reports of 1995 and 1998. The report of 1995 indicated that the"preventive defense"security strategy in the Asia-pacific region had been basically forged, and the U.S. Asia-Pacific security posture had transformed from"equilibrium + deterrence"to"prevention + deterrence". Compared with the report of 1995, the report of 1998 paid more attention to comprehensive security. Prior to the September 11th terrorist attack, the George W. Bush administration pursued a security strategy of"preventive containment"in the Asia-Pacific region. After the September 11th terrorist attack, the George W. Bush administration adjusted its global security strategy, and simultaneously carried on corresponding adjustments on its Asia-Pacific security strategy. Anti-terrorism has been regarded as the urgent task in this region. In order to manage the challenge of terrorism, U.S. carried on adjustments on its military existence and alliances in this region.Following the Asia-Pacific security strategy adjustments, U.S.'s East Asian security policy has also experienced tremendous changes. First, the security policy towards China has experienced frequent and complex undulation. The George Bush administration ended the semi-alliance partnership. The Clinton administration displayed strong tendency of anti-China in the initial period, and then established a nominal strategic partnership from the mid of its two terms. Compared with Clinton administration, The George W. Bush administration displayed stronger tendency of anti-China in the initial period. After the September 11th terrorist attack, it devotes in establishing a new security cooperation relationship with China. The U.S. security policy towards China will continue swinging between"engagement"and"containment". Second, U.S. maintained and strengthened U.S.-Japan alliance. In the early post-Cold War era, The U.S.-Japan alliance experienced a short period of"distrust crisis". The Clinton administration redefined the U.S.-Japan alliance, and the George W. Bush administration made a further step in strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance. Now the U.S.-Japan relationship has become"the most important bilateral relation in the world". Third, The U.S.'s security policy towards Korean peninsula appears two connecting and interacting layers: one points to the DPRK with the purpose of"regulating"it and eliminating"the North Korea menace"; the other one points to the surrounding great powers with the purpose of"regulating"relevant countries and to dispel their attempt to gain regional dominance. Forth, U.S. ended the contraction from South-east Asia and tries to control it again. In order to maintain its strategic interests in this region, U.S. began to seek new footholds from the mid of 1990s. After the September 11th terrorist attack, U.S"is returning to the South-East Asia"in a larger scale by the way of"pioneering the second field of anti-terrorist war".In the post-Cold War period, the goals of U.S.'s East Asian security policy are to strengthen U.S.'s status of domination in this region, to maintain the regional security and the stability and to expand U.S.-like democracy. In order to catch these goals, U.S maintains and strengthens military existence in the East Asian area, restores and enhances the bilateral military alliances, processes the relations with China and Japan with the principle of"equilibrium", intervenes in the hot issues of this area by multilateral security mechanisms. The U.S.'s East Asian security policy in the post-Cold War period follows hegemonic stability theory, and tries to carry out a hegemony stability model. But the hegemonic stability theory has some paralogisms, and the U.S. faces many realistic challenges in carrying out this model in the East-Asia area.