The Asia-Pacific Century : Challenges and Opportunities

This book is the result of a year-long study conducted by the Air Force Research Institute concerning Air Force strategy in the Asia-Pacific region. By addressing issues from economic integration to a potential nuclear arms race and key regional actors (China, North Korea, India), it provides a broad perspective on the topics that will shape the future of US involvement in the region. These include the areas of nuclear proliferation, international criminal activity, terrorism, environmental degradation, pandemic diseases, natural disasters, and more.

When Secretary of State Hillary Clinton published "America’s Pacific Century" in Foreign Policy magazine in November 2011, the administration was clearly indicating to domestic and international audiences that the United States is beginning a pivot toward the Asia-Pacific. Clinton’s article served as a spark for renewed interest in the nation’s Asia-Pacific strategy and American interests in the region.

The Asia-Pacific Century: Challenges and Opportunities looks to the future of the Asia-Pacific and examines a broad range of questions that focus on diplomatic, economic, and military challenges facing the region’s key players, with a particular focus on their relevance to the US military.