This thesis investigates whether Malaysia, as a small state, should participate in a United Nations (UN) standing force. The proposal to establish a UN standing force for conducting peacekeeping operations was introduced not long after the...
Since 1975 there have been considerable changes in Malaysia. Among these are the internal issues of fundamentalism and political bipolarism and external security problems associated with the emergence of a belligerent Vietnam supported by the...
This research explores the ambivalence that surrounds Singapore's post-independence defense policy. On the one hand, Singapore's defense policy has complemented the nation's overall development with its robust efficacy and fiscal efficiency....
The Strait of Malacca in Southeast Asia is one of the world’s most important waterways. Piracy, terrorism, and instability within the region have prompted representatives of global commerce to consider this strait dangerous to shipping. Any major...
From late 1962 through mid-1966, President Sukarno of Indonesia sought to gain control of East Malaysia, the northern portion of the island of Borneo, by a combination of political and military means. This process was called Confrontation. His...
This monograph is a case study examining the substitution of the Cold War strategy of large forward deployed military forces and nuclear deterrence for the Post Cold War strategy of global engagement and leadership and the implications of that...
On 10 -11 September 2003, the Center for the Study of Intelligence hosted a conference in Charlottesville, Virginia, to discuss the subject “Intelligence for a New Era in American Foreign Policy.” One of the recommendations from that...
This monograph discusses the propensity for conflict surrounding the diminishing water in Lake Chad. The shortage of water in the lake and its basin threatens regional economic development and the existence of the population in the area. The paper...
Using Force XXI operational concepts, the US Military expects to overwhelm both high and low technology opponents. If history is any indication, however, apparently low tech forces have the potential at least to tie 'modern,' conventional...
With the recent claimed phased withdrawal of the Vietnamese occupation forces from Cambodia in September 1989, it may appear that ASEAN has at last attained what it had sought for at the UN for the last decade since the Vietnamese invasion in...
The United States Navy has always considered combating piracy a mission and responsibility under international law and tradition. Recently, the importance of this mission has increased markedly. There are two reasons for this. First, the increase...
Like many other multiethnic countries, Malaysia has seen a revival in Islamic fundamentalism in her Muslim populace since the seventies. The ongoing revival has led to pressures on the Malaysian government to establish an Islamic state in the...
Islamic Terrorism in Southeast Asia constitutes the second front in the Global War on Terrorism. Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf, transnational terrorist organizations with ties to Al Qaeda, have frustrated U.S. efforts to eradicate terrorism and...
America's strategy to combat terrorism, resulting from Al-Qaeda's 2001 attacks, falls short of its intent to defeat transnational terrorism. While the tenets of the current counterterrorism strategy were written broadly to enable global employment,...
This study examines U.S. policy towards the Spratly Islands dispute as it relates to the overall U.S. strategy in Southeast Asia in the post-Cold War era. The ongoing dispute among China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei over...
Threats to security within the Asia-Pacific region continue to evolve. Traditional and non-traditional threats to state sovereignty and individuals exist across the region. Despite most recent security challenges being transnational, the dominant...
The current rebalancing of U.S. forces to the Pacific requires an understanding of a number of factors. Among the factors are a greater understanding of emerging trends in the Chinese military and a clear assessment of the Chinese regional...
At the commencement of the twenty-first century Australia finds itself questioning the employment of its military and once again seeking to define its role in an environment characterized by threats from nonstate actors and the advent of successive...
The World Factbook is a guide to country profiles containing fields including geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.
South East Asia (SEA) is a highly diversified region, culturally, ethnically, and religiously. Currently, territorial disputes and domestic instability make SEA a rather volatile region, masked by a seemingly benign facade. Singapore, an island...