Revisiting the Transatlantic Triangle: The Decolonisation of the British Caribbean in Light of the Anglo-American Special Relationship

The international collapse in the price of sugar, together with increasing immigration restrictions in the late 1920s and 1930s, produced great pressure on wages and employment throughout the British Caribbean. The underlying tensions reached their boiling point in the years between 1935 and 1938. The chronology proved fateful and speaks for itself: a sugar strike in St. Kitts, 1935; a revolt against an increase of customs duties in St. Vincent, 1935; a coal strike in St. Lucia, 1935; labor disputes in the sugar plantations of British Guiana, 1935; oil strikes in Trinidad and Tobago, 1937; urban riots in Barbados, 1937; and acute disturbances in Jamaica, 1938. While these disturbances, together with the radicalization of the colonial discourse, facilitated the archipelago's constitutional decolonization, attributing all social, economic, and constitutional postwar reforms to the riots alone constitutes an immense leap of faith. A careful analysis of the chronology, let alone a detailed study of the archival records, suggests a robust correlation between the islands’ constitutional evolution and the geopolitical worries of the Anglo-American alliance. The German threat, on the one hand, led Britain to re-articulate its colonial project and, on the other, compelled the US to make sure the British did not walk away from their responsibilities. The strategic importance of “the slums of empire” came to light dramatically once the theater of war became apparent. The Caribbean now became “the show window” where British and American interests collided against each other.     

The Anglo-American “Special Relationship”: The Lazarus of International Relations

Scholars have variously queried the existence of the Anglo-American “special relationship,” consigned it to history as “special no more,” or demanded that Britain choose between its European and American relationships. These critiques have become increasingly prevalent since the Cold War. Yet the current British government, like many before it, continues to portray a choice between America and Europe as a “false choice,” and the “special relationship” has arguably deepened in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. This article contends that international diplomatic history can contribute much to understanding the “Lazarus-like” quality of the “special relationship.” Specifically it argues that a number of critical continuities in post-World War II British foreign policy survived the end of the Cold War and have since contributed heavily to the determination of the British foreign policymaking elite to maintain the “special relationship” at the same time that Britain pursues a leadership role within Europe.     

越战时期英美国绕英国出兵问题的分歧与协调

英美对越南战争的认识和观点差别较大,两国围绕英国是否出兵越南产生很大矛盾。虽经多次磋商,但英国自始至终拒绝美国的出兵要求。然而,由于英国在诸如西欧防务、英镑的支持等方面有求于美国,所以英国政府也竭力与美国协调以避免关系破裂,坚持为美国的越南政策提供道义上和外交上的支持,同时极力斡旋调停,帮助美国”体面地”撤离越南,但最终还是未能避免由此给英美关系带来的严重的负面冲击。     

Managing the Transatlantic Gap: The Rise of Spain

Among the many frustrations hampering cooperation between Western allies is the transatlantic gap in defense capabilities. Many analysts find little reason for hope that the gap might close in the near future due to the growing differential in aggregate defense spending between the U.S. and Europe. In recent years, however, Spain set an intriguing precedent for small states entering the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU). Defying economies of scale, Spain used progressive institutions at domestic and international levels along with creative geopolitics to engage both the U.S. and traditional powers in Europe. The result was that Spain, without dramatic increases in defense spending, still managed to narrow the transatlantic gap along vital dimensions. These included increased participation in the development of high-technology defense and aerospace systems as well as a stronger, independent voice in global affairs.     

欧盟建立过程中的法、德联合和跨大西洋关系

法德关系一直是欧洲大陆和平与稳定的关键因素.虽然,法德关系在历史上曾一度笼罩在战争的阴影中,但二战后,法德摆脱了历史恩怨,史无前例地选择了和解,为欧盟的最终建立铺平了道路.本文以时间为线索,梳理了法德在欧盟创建过程中的关系脉络.同时,本文在讨论法德关系的基础上,回顾了美国在欧盟创建过程中的作用,并展望了当今跨大西洋关系的前景.     

革新开放以来老挝与越南特殊关系的新发展

老挝人民民主共和国和越南社会主义共和国在反帝反殖的共同斗争中形成和建立了特殊的团结和友好关系,老越特殊关系一度成为老挝对外关系的核心。随着20世纪80年代中期老挝全方位外交方针和政策的确定和实施,老挝在发展对越关系时表现更为主动积极,老挝与越南的特殊关系不仅没有因为全方位外交方针的实施而发生变动,而是更为紧密,特别是在区域经济一体化等新形势下,双边合作还在不断深化和扩大,老越特殊关系正朝着更为巩固方向发展。     

中俄印三国能源合作背景与可行性分析

中俄印三国的人口、国内生产总值和陆地面积分别占世界40%、22·5%和44%。三国无论是政治还是经济合作,都将给世界政治和经济带来重大变化。三国的能源合作既是世界多极化和经济全球化的结果,也是三国经济发展的需要。     

Educational efficiency in the Caribbean: a comparative analysis

With a rapidly growing population and limited resources, accountability has taken on increased importance, especially in the area of public management. To assess the effectiveness of public spending on education in the Caribbean, this article compares performance in five Caribbean nations, looking at input indicators such as the teacher–pupil ratio, expenditure per pupil, the number of adequately trained teachers as a proportion of total teaching staff, and public commitment to education. It analyses their impact on output indicators, including performance in English and mathematics, the repetition rate, and survival rate to the final grade in school. The article concludes that the levels of efficiency in the development of human capital in the Caribbean are very uneven, and that serious challenges face Caribbean countries as they seek to maximise the returns on their investment in education.     

中美俄:三边关系互动新趋势

中美俄三边关系是当今世界上最重要的三边关系。在共同应对国际金融危机的大目标下,特别是在奥巴马就任美国总统之后,三边关系出现了一些新的转机,其中处于较低水平的美俄关系出现了较大的调整。作为联合国常任理事国的中美俄三国,其相互关系的良性互动必然有利于世界的和平、稳定与发展。因此,不排除未来三国之间建立某种对话与协调机制的可能。     

Anglo-American Competition in Central America, 1905-13: The Role of Sir Lionel Carden

Lionel Carden's years as a senior diplomat coincided with the rise of American power in, and Great Britain's strategic disengagement from, the Caribbean region. This changing order naturally gave rise to complications: Great Britain had extensive economic interests in the region, and diplomatic personnel - Carden in particular - endeavoured to protect these interests while at the same time the Foreign Office sought to maintain a good relationship with the United States. Carden's vigorous defence of British economic interests in Central America earned him the reputation in Washington of being 'anti-American'. Carden, however, was most likely acting as a 'buffer' to deflect criticism from policy makers at home.     

Anglo-American Competition in Central America, 1905-13: The Role of Sir Lionel Carden

Lionel Carden's years as a senior diplomat coincided with the rise of American power in, and Great Britain's strategic disengagement from, the Caribbean region. This changing order naturally gave rise to complications: Great Britain had extensive economic interests in the region, and diplomatic personnel - Carden in particular - endeavoured to protect these interests while at the same time the Foreign Office sought to maintain a good relationship with the United States. Carden's vigorous defence of British economic interests in Central America earned him the reputation in Washington of being 'anti-American'. Carden, however, was most likely acting as a 'buffer' to deflect criticism from policy makers at home.     

当前加勒比地区的发展

加勒比共同体多数成员都是中等收入的发展中国家,它们的国土面积狭小,但经济的对外开放程度相对较高.除了苏里南和海地之外,加勒比共同体成员国都曾经是英国的殖民地.     

Revisiting Nuclear Opacity in the Middle East: A Scenario

This article explores a scenario of extended nuclear opacity in the Middle East that would comprise two undeclared nuclear powers: Iran and Israel. We argue that this regional spread of nuclear opacity would act as a major driver of instability in terms of conflict prevention and non- proliferation efforts. In both cases, it would demand a profound reevaluation of security policies conducted by Western countries and their allies in the region. Extended nuclear opacity in the Middle East would mean no communication channels, and no declaratory policies. It would entail no information on security perceptions, doctrines, capabilities, or targeting policies. This scenario of nuclear opacity is worth exploring as it brings new light to several critical issues in security studies. In particular it re-emphasizes a feature sometimes considered too casually which is that deterrence, if it ever is working, is not a natural state. It is socially situated and needs solid prerequisites, among them a certain level of transparency and communication. It also offers a new perspective on the logic of “nuclear hedging” and it revives the question of security guarantees from external powers as relevant means to balance threats.     

Transatlantic conflict management inside-out: the impact of domestic norms on regional security practices

This article explores the impact of domestic norms on regional security practices in a pluralistic security community in the transatlantic area. A security community is considered to be ‘a group which has become integrated, where integration is defined as the attainment of a sense of community, accompanied by formal or informal institutions or practices, sufficiently strong and widespread to assure peaceful change among members of a group with “reasonable” certainty over a “long” period of time’ (Karl W Deutsch, Sidney A Burrell, Robert A Kann, Maurice Lee Jr, Martin Lichterman, Raymond E Lindgren, Francis L Loewenheim and Richard W Van Wagenen (1957) Political community and the North Atlantic area: international organization in the light of historical experience (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press)). Recent studies have aligned the concept of security community with the practice turn in International Relations theory. Although practice theory is able to explain peaceful conflict resolution within a security community, this article shows that its explanatory power is significantly weaker when it comes to military interventions outside the security community. The article theoretically and empirically investigates this argument by using the empirical case of extraregional conflict management in Afghanistan. The importance of domestic norms in constructing and perceiving regional security practices in out-of-area operations emphasizes the ‘local’ over the ‘regional’ as a crucial driver behind the emergence of a regional actor's understanding of security and thus for the formation and consolidation of regional peace.     

COIN Machine: The British Military in Afghanistan

This article assesses the British military effort in Afghanistan looking at three key elements in the campaign: strategy, military operations, and the inter-agency “Comprehensive Approach.” We start by recognising the scale of the challenge that has faced the British: of all the provinces in Afghanistan, Helmand is the toughest to stabilize and secure. We then examine the evolution of all three elements above and find significant improvements in each: a flawed strategy has been corrected; the military have received more resources and become significantly better at COIN; and there is significant progress in the development of the inter-agency approach. In short, what the Americans will find in Helmand is a British COIN machine; a little creaky perhaps, but one that is fit for purpose and getting the job done. We briefly conclude on the prospects and the key to success: namely the development of a more coherent international strategy that accommodates the challenges posed by both Afghanistan and Pakistan.