Twentieth Century Benchmark Dates in International Relations: The Three World Wars in Historical Perspective *

This paper builds on the author’s earlier work on benchmark dates in International Relations. The Introduction summarises this work and explains how this paper extends the analysis from suggestions made, but not developed, in earlier publications. The second section looks in detail at 20 th century benchmark dates centred on the three world wars (First, Second and Cold). It argues that the changes clustered around the Second World War are both deeper and more extensive than those clustered around either the First World War or the Cold War. The third section uses these insights to open-up a macro-historical perspective on the 20 th century, demonstrating the ways in which choices in relation to both time and scale affect the construction of macro-historical perspectives. The fourth section demonstrates the advantages of a two-century perspective on the 20 th century. Here, and in the conclusion, we argue that the key issues that underpinned world politics in the 20 th century are best seen as the downstream consequences of the dynamics and challenges ushered in by the 19 th century “global transformation.”     

对抗日战争战略相持阶段何时形成的历史考察

:本文认为 ,从 1938年 10月到 1939年秋 ,抗日战争的战局基本上都处于向战略相持阶段的过渡时期 ;9月以后 ,在国际新形势的影响下 ,不论是正面战场 ,还是敌后战场 ,全面相持的形势业已出现。因此 ,至 1939年底、1940年初 ,中国的抗战战局才完全地处于战略相持阶段     

中柬“特殊关系”的形成(1954-1965)

1954年日内瓦会议以后的10年是中国和柬埔寨关系发展的重要时期。在这一时期中,两国关系经历了一个从彼此缺乏了解到在国际事务中密切合作的过程。在冷战时期,中国领导人视美国为对中国革命和中国国家安全的主要威胁,因此,他们对外政策的一个主要目标就是要打破美国对中国的孤立和封锁。为了反对和削弱美国这个主要敌人,中国领导人在外交领域中运用统一战线策略,分化对手并争取中立势力。就柬埔寨而言,中国领导人的主要考虑就是如何赢得西哈努克对中国的好感,争取他的合作,防止柬埔寨加入美国组织的反华包围圈。此外,中国领导人也希望通过柬埔寨来扩大中国在亚非中立国家中的影响。     

抗战时期我军干部的选拔方式

抗战时期,我军在探索干部选拔方法方面积累了丰富的实践经验：一是坚持全面历史地综合考察干部;二是突出在斗争实践中选拔干部;三是严格按照程序选拔干部;四是注重运用群众路线选拔干部。这些方法的运用,有力地促进了我军抗战时期干部队伍的建设,确保了干部质量的提高。     

Arab Nationalism and British opposition in Dubai, 1920–66

The article examines the armistice talks between Israel and Jordan (March–April 1949) from the perspective of the UN mediator, Ralph Bunche, who coordinated them. The period described was stormy and complex: at its start, Israel took control of the southern Negev. Later, the two countries conducted formal talks in Rhodes, under Bunche's watchful eye, in parallel to informal negotiations, without UN involvement, in Jordan. The article, based to a large extent on Bunche's unpublished diary, explains why Bunche, who maintained rigorous control of all of the other armistice talks, behaved differently in this case, giving his post factum seal of approval to the Israeli takeover of the southern Negev and allowing Israel to pressure Abdullah to hand over the Triangle. The thesis is that Bunche, who could have put an end to the talks by resigning, or drawn the US into the crisis (as he did in the other rounds of negotiations), recognized the complexity of the relations between Israel and Abdullah and chose to act in a way that would prevent a new eruption of hostilities. In effect he was protecting Abdullah, who would have been likely to lose the West Bank to Israel in another round of fighting.     

国际刑事法院管辖权探究——以利比亚情势为视角

在利比亚战争期间,国际刑事法院对卡扎菲等人发出逮捕令,对卡扎菲政权的灭亡以及被追捕的有关人的生命、自由产生巨大影响。利比亚战争虽然已经结束,但国际刑事法院的各项诉讼活动仍在进行。通过利比亚战争期间国际刑事法院的一系列活动,可以看出国际刑事法院的管辖权依据、行使的方式和结构,同时也证明了国际刑事法院在处理重大国际事件,特别是国际罪行中的重要性、权威性、公正性和独立性。     

东北亚地区安全形势与我国面临的安全挑战

东北亚地区异质政治文明与非兼容战略目标的并存,使东北亚地区在政治上表现出鲜明的非整合性特征;遗留的冷战遗产和因热点问题引发的国家间对抗,使该地区安全形势处于"两难"与"困境"之中;涉及到资源、环境等各个方面的非传统安全问题呈现出愈来愈突出的发展态势。在中国致力建设多元均衡的东北亚安全秩序之际,美国在关系到中国根本安全利益的台湾问题上向中国直接挑战,并利用对华政策的不确定性干扰中国对外政策的一贯性,利用对华政策的矛盾性牵制中国和平崛起战略的统筹性。中国必须准确识别美国针对中国综合安全的政治讹诈,保持清醒,及时调整自身战略的阶段性目标,控制内政与外交的节奏,稳健发展,在发展中求安全。     

Cold War redux in US–Russia relations? The effects of US media framing and public opinion of the 2008 Russia–Georgia war

This paper examines the Cold War rhetoric in US–Russia relations by looking at the 2008 Russia–Georgia war as a major breaking point. We investigate the links between media, public opinion and foreign policy. In our content analysis of the coverage in two major US newspapers, we find that the framing of the conflict was anti-Russia, especially in the initial stages of the conflict. In addition, our survey results demonstrate that an increase in the media exposure of US respondents increased the likelihood of blaming Russia exclusively in the conflict. This case study helps us understand how media can be powerful in constructing a certain narrative of an international conflict, which can then affect public perceptions of other countries. We believe that the negative framing of Russia in the US media has had important implications for the already-tenuous relations between the US and Russia by reviving and perpetuating the Cold War mentality for the public as well as for foreign policymakers.     

Reviews

Books reviewed:
Sampson Vera Tudela, Colonial Angels: Narratives of Gender and Sprituality in Mexico
Archer, Wars of Independence in Spanish America
Bergad, Slavery and the Demographic and Economic History of Minas Gerais, Brazil, 1720–1888
McFarlane and Posado-Carbó, Independence and Revolution in Spanish America: Perspectives and Problems
Earle, Spain and the Independence of Colombia, 1800–1825
Zimmermann, Judicial Institutions in Nineteenth-Century Latin America
Nugent, Modernity at the Edge of Empire: State, Individual, and Nation in the Northern Peruvian Andes
Chowning, Wealth and Power in Provincial Mexico: Michoacán from the Late Colony ti the Revolution
Benjamin, La Revolució: Mexico's Great Revolution as Memory, Myth, and History
Spenser, The Impossible Triangle: Mexico, Soviet Russia, and the United States in the 1920s
Buve and Weisebron, Procesos de Integración en América Latina: Perspectivas y Experiencias Latinoamericanas y Europeas
Edelman, Peasants Against Globalisation: Rural Social Movements in Costa Rica
Pelupessy and Ruben, Agrarian Policies in Central America
Harvey, The Chiapas Rebellion: The Struggle for Land and Democracy
Hite, When the Romance Ended: Leaders of the Chilean Left
Aguirre and Buffington, Reconstructing Criminality in Latin America
Craske, Women and Politics in Latin America
Beverley, Subalternity and Representation: Arguments in Cultural Theory
Breiner, An Introduction to West Indian Poetry
Goslinga, Caribbean Literature: A Bibliography
San Román, Onetti and Others: Comparative Essays on a Major Figure in Latin American Literature