This volume provides the first comprehensive history of the arms racing phenomenon in modern international politics, drawing both on theoretical approaches and on the latest historical research. Written by an international team of specialists, it is divided into four sections: before 1914; the inter-war years; the Cold War; and extra-European and post-Cold War arms races. Twelve case studies examine land and naval armaments before the First World War; air, land, and naval competition during the 1920s and 1930s; and nuclear as well as conventional weapons since 1945. Armaments policies are placed within the context of technological development, international politics and diplomacy, and social politics and economics. An extended general introduction and conclusion and introductions to each section provide coherence between the specialized chapters and draw out wider implications for policymakers and for political scientists. Arms Races in International Politics addresses two key questions: what causes arms races, and what is the connection between arms races and the outbreak of wars?

Joseph Maiolo: Introduction; PART I: Before 1914; 1 David Stevenson: Introduction: Before 1914; 2 Matthew S. Seligmann: The Anglo-German Naval Race, 1898-1914; 3 David Stevenson: Land Armaments in Europe, 1866-1914; PART II: BETWEEN THE TWO WORLD WARS; 4 Joseph Maiolo: Introduction: Between the Two World Wars; 5 Evan Mawdsley: Land Armaments, 1919-1941; 6 Joseph Maiolo: Naval Armaments Competition between the Two World Wars; 7 Richard Overy: Aircraft and the Arms Race between the World Wars; PART III: THE COLD WAR ARMS RACE; 8 Thomas Mahnken: Introduction: The Cold War Arms Race; 9 Timothy D. Hoyt: The United States and the Cold War Arms Race; 10 Sergey Radchenko: The Soviet Union and the Cold War Arms Race; 11 Vojtech Mastny: The Cold War Arms Race: Forces Beyond the Superpowers; PART IV: EXTRA-EUROPEAN ARMS RACES AND DEVELOPMENTS SINCE THE COLD WAR; 12 Thomas Mahnken: Introduction: Extra-European Arms Races and Developments since the Cold War; 13 Avi Kober: Arms Races and the Arab-Israeli Conflict; 14 Rudra Chaudhuri: Arms and Assistance in South Asia 1953-1965: Why Racing Alone Explains Little; 15 Tai Ming Cheung: Racing from Behind: China and the Dynamics of Arms Chases and Races in East Asia in the 21st Century; 16 Thomas Mahnken: Armaments Developments since the Cold War; David Stevenson: Conclusion