Talleyrand and England, 1792-1838: A Reinterpretation

Talleyrand fascinated his contemporaries and later historians alike on account of his wit, style, and epigrams, and perhaps even his policies. Talleyrand drifted across the Channel many times, and so did his policy towards Britain. This article examines his mission to London, 1792-94, and his later attitude towards Britain during the Napoleonic and Restoration periods. In so doing it seeks to demythologise Talleyrand's role as the founder of the Entente Cordiale. His policy, like the Entente itself, was based on ideals rather than realities.     

Britain and Japan: Long-Range Images, 1900-52

The Anglo-Japanese Alliance signed in 1902 was revised substantially in 1905 and 1911. It survived the First World War and did not lapse until 1923. For two decades, it enabled Britain to withdraw its navy from East Asia, leaving its commercial interests to the protection of Japan. Meanwhile it enabled Japan to expand its influence in Korea and China. There was not an immediate breach of the alliance, but interests clashed in China in the difficult world of economic collapse in the 1930s. When they failed to come to an accommodation, Japan declared war on Britain in 1941. After the war, Britain shared with the United States the task of policing the military occupation of Japan. But when that occupation came to an end in 1952 during the anxious days of the Korean war, the vast majority of Japanese believed that their country's future rested with Washington.     

Negotiating At Cross-Purposes: Sino-American Ambassadorial Talks, 1961-68

Previous studies on the Sino-American ambassadorial talks have underestimated the efficacy of the negotiations from 1961 to 1968. New documentation from both U.S. and Chinese sources shows that both Washington and Beijing viewed the Warsaw channel as vitally important in managing the delicate relationship and made every effort to keep it going. Based on these new sources, this article analyzes the context of the Sino-American talks in the 1960s, the major issues discussed, maneuvers, rhetoric and follow-up actions. It concludes that the Warsaw channel was a useful facilitator for managing Sino-American relations in the turbulent 1960s, an important part of the mutual learning process, and it shortened the learning curve for the future policy makers.     

'Arming the key battleground': German rearmament, 1950-55

Saki Dockrill, Britain's Policy for West German Rearmament, 1950-1955, Cambridge Studies in International Relations No 13, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1991, £27.50.

Thomas Alan Schwartz, America's Germany. John J. McCloy and the Federal Republic of Germany, Cambridge, USA, Harvard University Press, 1991, £23.95.     

中国—东盟自由贸易区的建立：背景、意义与未来

2001年11月在文莱举行的第五届东盟、中国"10+1"会议上,中国与东盟正式决定在10年内建立中国-东盟自由贸易区.按照双方所达成的协议,建立该自由贸易区的过渡期为10年,除了相互之间取消关税外,还将会把农业、信息通讯、人力资源开发、相互投资和湄公河开发作为近期合作的重点领域;为支持东盟缩小内部发展差距,中方将适时向东盟中的三个最不发达成员--老挝、柬埔寨和缅甸提供特殊优惠关税待遇.这是东亚地区区域经济合作方面取得的一项重大进展,将对东亚地区经济贸易合作的全面展开产生深刻的影响.     

论中非关系的演变:历史意义、经验与教训

中非关系源远流长,积累了丰富的历史内涵.50多年来,中非关系史的特点可以归纳为:基于地缘政治和历史机遇,中非间由"三无"关系发展为"全天候"友谊,进而确立为政治上平等互信、经济上合作共赢、文化上交流互鉴的新型战略伙伴关系;基于中华传统文化、"和为贵"求共荣的思维,中非关系已经形成明确理念--"友谊、和平、合作、发展";随着中国改革开放的深入,中方企业与各门类人员越来越多地走进非洲;中非友好合作不仅在国际事务方面,而且深入到对国家发展道路的共同探索.上述特点体现出中非关系在世界现代史上的地位.新中国成立以来,中非关系发展的历史经验有两条:其一是要坚持贯彻并不断弘扬"万隆精神";其二是要坚持发挥国家集中体制在交往活动中的主导作用.