New tides in the Pacific : Pacific Basin Cooperation and the Big Four (Japan, PRC, USA, USSR) /

A collection of essays written over the last several years by ten international scholars concerning the concept of a ``Pacific Community.'' The Pacific basin is a coherent region with enormous underdeveloped wealth, awaiting the establishment of an appropriate framework for economic cooperation between those nations in and around it. The volume of trade in and across the Pacific has become larger than its Atlantic counterpart, leading to the advent of the ``the Pacific era.'' But cooperation between Pacific nations is hindered by several obstacles. Different economic systems lead to differences about the meaning of development. The socialists fear that the capitalists are interested in cooperation as a device to build an anti-Communist military alliance, and that ``free trade'' is a stalking horse for extending their imperialist ambitions. Many worry about expanding Japanese economic interests, since that nation has become the major trading partner of practically every country in the region. The Sino-Soviet relationship is another imponderable, as is increasing protectionism and the unstable international financial situation. But the ``new thinking'' called for by Gorbachev and the improving Sino-American relationship are signs of continuing progress toward improving international cooperation in the area. Readers wanting to explore the topic further should consult Staffan Burenstam Linder's The Pacific Century (CH, Jun '86) and The Emerging Pacific Community, ed. by Robert L. Downen and Bruce J. Dickson (1984). Academic and public library collections.-B.B. Brown Jr., Southern Oregon State College