Asia was a major focus of struggle between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The struggle for predominance in East Asia predated the Cold War, this book gives examples of the USA and Russia/the Soviet Union working to increase control in the region. The book focuses on secret treaties signed between the late 1890s and 1945.

Introduction: The International Impact of Secret Diplomacy, Treaty 1: 3 June 1896-Sino-Russian Treaty of Alliance, Treaty 2: 28 April 1899-Anglo-Russian Agreement, Treaty 3: 6 September 1899-Open Door Policy Notes, Treaty 4: 5 September 1905-Portsmouth Peace Treaty, Treaty 5: 30 July 1907-Russo-Japanese secret protocol, Treaty 6: 4 July 1910-Russo-Japanese secret protocol, Treaty 7: 8 July 1912-Russo-Japanese secret protocol, Treaty 8: 7 June 1915-Russia-China-Mongolia Tripartite Treaty, Treaty 9: 3 July 1916-Russo-Japanese secret treaty of alliance, Treaty 10: 2 November 1917-Lansing-Ishii notes, Treaty 11: 24 September 1918-Sino-Japanese Shandong Agreement, Treaty 12: 30 April 1919- U.S.-Japanese Shandong Note, Treaty 13: 25 July 1919-Karakhan Manifesto, Treaty 14: 31 May 1924-Sino-Soviet secret protocol, Treaty 15: 20 September 1924-Soviet-Zhang Zuolin secret protocol, Treaty 16: 20 January 1925-Soviet-Japanese convention, Treaty 17: 20 January 1925-Bessarabia secret protocol, Treaty 18: 22 December 1929-Sino-Soviet Khabarovsk treaty, Treaty 19: 23 March 1935-CER Protocol, Treaty 20: 21 August 1937-Sino-Soviet Non-aggression Treaty, Treaty 21: 23 August 1939-Molotov-Ribbentrop Treaty, Treaty 22: 13 April 1941-Soviet-Japanese neutrality pact, Treaty 23: 11 February 1945-Yalta Agreement, Treaty 24: 14 August 1945-Sino-Soviet Friendship Treaty, Treaty 25: 22 August 1945-General Order Number One, Treaty 26: 14 February 1950-Sino-Soviet Friendship Treaty.