In this edited book, leading scholars and analysts trace the origins, evolution and the current state of Indo-US strategic cooperation.

During the Cold War, owing to opposing grand strategies, the two states frequently found themselves at odds. With the end of the Cold War and the demise of the Soviet Union, Indo-US security cooperation started in a fitful fashion, but in recent years it has acquired considerable stability. The armed forces of the two states have participated in exercises on land, sea and air and have also carried out joint humanitarian missions. Drawing on new...

Andrew Scobell examines the use of Chinese military force abroad as in Korea (1950), Vietnam (1979), and the Taiwan Strait (1995-1996) and domestically, as during the Cultural Revolution of the late 1960s and in the 1989 military crackdown in Tiananmen square. Scobell warns that a "Cult of Defense" disposes Chinese leaders to rationalize all military deployment as defensive. However, changes in the People's Liberation Army's doctrine and capabilities over the past two decades suggest that China's 21st Century leaders may use military force more readily than their predecessors.

To many in the United States, China looms large and threatening. What are the national security and national military goals of China's leaders? What strategies are Chinese leaders considering in pursuit of these goals? What is the likelihood that these goals will be attained? This monograph attempts to answer these questions through an analysis of China's defense establishment under the leadership of Jiang Zemin. It assesses the political and economic determinants of China's effort to modernize its armed forces. Four possible strategies are outlined: (1) "playing the superpower game," (2)...

Andrew Scobell examines the use of Chinese military force abroad as in Korea (1950), Vietnam (1979), and the Taiwan Strait (1995-1996) and domestically, as during the Cultural Revolution of the late 1960s and in the 1989 military crackdown in Tiananmen square. Scobell warns that a "Cult of Defense" disposes Chinese leaders to rationalize all military deployment as defensive. However, changes in the People's Liberation Army's doctrine and capabilities over the past two decades suggest that China's 21st Century leaders may use military force more readily than their predecessors.

The chapters presented in this volume have demonstrated first, Chinese and PLA leaders have a strong sense of mission and concern for Chinas security and well-being. Second, the PLA is committed to the transformation in military affairs with Chinese characteristics. Third, the PLA is eager to learn from the U.S. military to expand and improve its operational capabilities. Finally, the PLA has made progress in its transformation and operational capabilities. For a long time, American leaders have been surprised with the PLAs advances. This volume (and many of the previous volumes from past PLA...

On September 26, 2008, over 70 leading experts from academia, government, the military and policy thinktanks assembled at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, to look beyond the Chinese Peoples Liberation Armys (PLA) primary focus on Taiwan and to the evolving new roles of the PLA. The conference could not have been timelier, given the PLAs active involvement in events during 2008, including earthquake relief, counterterrorism, humanitarian assistance, space activities, and blue water naval operations.

The importance of China stems not only from its current international role and its influence on the Asia-Pacific region in particular, but also because Chinas impact on global developments will likely continue to grow. One of our enduring imperatives is to accurately survey Chinas experiences as a means to grasp its existing perceptions, motivations, and ambitions. More than ever, solid, evidence-based evaluation of what the PLA has learned from the use of force and conflict elsewhere in the world is needed to shed light on the prospects for its cooperation, or rivalry, with the international...

The annual Conference on the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) took place at the U.S. Army War College (USAWC), in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on October 22-24, 2010.1 The topic for this year's conference was the "PLA's lessons from Other People's Wars." Participants at the conference sought to discern what lessons the PLA has been learning from the strategic and operational experiences of the armed forces of other countries during the past 3 decades. Why did observers of the PLA want to study what Chinese military analysts might learned about non-Chinese wars? The answer is twofold. First,...