"It is not often that a book of this quality, substance, and scope appears. . . .This book is, without a doubt, a major contribution to the literature on the Asian security practice and one which can be confidently predicted to become a standard reference for many years to come." --Journal of Asian Studies

Preface; Contributors; Introduction; Part I. Conceptual and Historical Perspectives: 1. Rethinking security: a critical review and appraisal of the debate Muthiah Alagappa; 2. International politics in Asia: the historical context Muthiah Alagappa; Part II. Security Practice: Country Studies: 3. China: security practice of a modernizing and ascending power Wu Xinbo; 4. India: modified structuralism Kanti Bajpai; 5. Japan: normative constraints versus structural imperatives Yoshihide Soeya; 6. North Korea: deterrence through danger David Kang; 7. South Korea: recasting security paradigms Chung-in Moon; 8. Taiwan: in the dragon's shadow Roger Cliff; 9. Bangladesh: a weak state and power Iftekharuzzaman; 10. Pakistan: the crisis within Samina Ahmed; 11. Sri Lanka: the many faces of security Nira Wickramasinghe; 12. Myanmar: preoccupation with regime survival, national security Panitan Wattanayagorn; 14. Vietnam: struggle and cooperation Kim Ninh; 15. Indonesea: domestic priorities define national security Dewi Fortuna Anwar; 16. Malaysia: reinventing the nation K. S. Nathan; 17. The Philippines: state versus society? Noel M. Morada and Christopher Collier; 18. Singapore: realist cum trading state Narayanan Ganesan; Part III. Conclusion: 19. Asian practice of security: key features and explanations Muthiah Alagappa; 20. Conceptualizing security: hierarchy and conceptual travelling Muthiah Alagappa; Notes; Bibliography; Index.