The United States and Extraterritoriality

Book reviewed in this article:
Eileen P. Scully, Bargaining with the State From Afar: American Citizenship in Treaty Port China, 1844–1942     

熊出没的美国自驾游

怀描着这样那样的梦想,飞越太平洋,来到了昼与夜的对面。电影中的大都会,教科书中的车轮上的国家,明信片上的国家公园,一一展现在我们的面前,旅行即将开始。     

美国与亚非会议

1955年的亚非会议,是亚非历史上有重大意义的一次会议。用美国自己的档案件,看看它对这一会议以及对中国代表团的态度和反应,也许会启发人们的思索。     

The United States and Regionalism in Central Asia

This article examines the record of American policy towards regional cooperation in Central Asia. It begins with the determinants of regionalism and the role of external states therein. It then considers the nature of American interests in Central Asia. This is followed by a historical account of the three stages of American policy towards the region. The article argues that regional cooperation has not been a significant aspect of US policy. Instead US policy-makers have preferred bilateral relations or multilateral structures (e.g. the Partnership for Peace, the GUUAM [Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Moldova] group) which draw the region's states beyond its boundaries. US policy tends to reduce incentives for regional actors to develop multilateral cooperation. It may also encourage competitive regionalist agendas on the part of other interested major powers (Russia and China).     

The great plains of the Central United States

Preliminary results from the Tanzanian census of 1988 are examined against the background of two decades of policies attempting to influence the distribution of population within the country. The overall rate of population increase has slowed down, as has the rate of urban population growth. However, the latter is very powerfully influenced by a significant reduction in the rate of growth in Dar es Salaam. Elsewhere, urban areas continue to grow very rapidly. Along with this pattern of population concentration, a degree of population dispersal is also evident, as a number of formerly lightly populated areas have recorded large percentage increases in population. A major cause for concern is that many of these areas have demonstrated various aspects of environmental degradation for some time. It is concluded that spatial planning policies have had only a limited impact upon the regional distribution of population in Tanzania in the 1978–88 period, and that ‘spontaneous’ processes have been far more significant.     

美国与1966年联合国中国代表权问题

1964年以后,国际社会支持中国恢复在联合国席位的力量日益增强。在1966年联合国关于中国代表权问题的讨论中,为阻止中国进入联合国,美国投入了极大的精力。在这一过程中,美国及其盟国和蒋介石集团发生了尖锐的矛盾,经过讨价还价,美国在盟国的压力下作了相应的让步,美蒋最终达成妥协,中国仍然被排除在联合国之外。     

The United States and Maghreb–Sahel security

Although the Maghreb has never been a priority, it now represents a region of significant interest for the United States. The importance of the Maghreb, and its Sahel extension, springs first from political and economic/energy interests, and second, from military, strategic and security concerns. The first relates to America's energy needs in the region, as well as to the regionalization that could create a potentially lucrative market for US businesses, especially since competition with China has increased over its recent gains in Africa. The second motivation, linked to the first, stems from Washington's new strategy and security policies initiated since 9/11 which have heightened the need for a new type of management concerning security, Islamism, terrorism, and, for a time, democratization. Unquestionably, the problems of terrorism, illegal migration, and other illegal activities are symptoms which cannot be understood if they are disconnected from their causes. However, rather than promoting economic development and good governance, the United States has focused predominantly on hard security matters and established a security system in the region which has continued under the Obama administration. Furthermore, Washington has not so far distanced itself from the regimes in the region whose authoritarianism, mismanagement of the economy, and violation of civil liberties is precisely what brought about the ills from which the Maghreb–Sahel suffers. Without addressing these issues therefore, there is little chance that the region will witness long-lasting peace, security, and prosperity. Furthermore, the protracted conflict in the Western Sahara, the resolution of which has been impeded by the geopolitical considerations of outside powers, has not only hindered the necessary construction of an integrated Maghreb, but also has the potential of leading to regional conflict.     

The United States, The United Nations and Iraq: 'Multilateralism of a kind'

Much is made of the need for any second war against Iraq (following Desert Storm of 1991) to be sanctioned by a resolution of the UN Security Council, approved necessarily by all five Permanent Members. Yet only two of the five, the USA and the UK, show any enthusiasm for renewed war in the Persian Gulf; and British policy is undeniably following rather than leading American actions on the diplomatic and military fronts. What are the sources of this American policy? Some critics say oil; the latest arguments of proponents invoke humanitarian concerns; somewhere between the two are those who desire ‘regime change’ to create the economic and political conditions in which so‐called western political, economic and social values can flourish. To understand the present crisis and its likely evolution this article examines American relations with Iraq in particular, the Persian Gulf more generally and the Middle East as a region since the Second World War. A study of these international relations combined with a critical approach to the history of American actions and attitudes towards the United Nations shows that the United States continues to pursue a diplomacy blending, as occasion suits, the traditional binaries of multilateralism and unilateralism—yet in the new world‐wide ‘war on terrorism’. The question remains whether the chosen means of fighting this war will inevitably lead to a pyrrhic victory for the United States and its ad hoc allies in the looming confrontation with Iraq.     

The Geography of Industry in the United States

This review article surveys American work on the geography of industry from the point of view of five lines of research: (1) the development of a general theory of industrial location; (2) the geography of manufacturing as a whole and the delimitation of manufacturing districts; (3) the geography of individual industries; (4) study of individual industrial districts and centers; and (5) the effect of technological change on the geography of industry.     

The Politics of HDTV in the United States

Policies adopted by the United States government between 1987 and 1993 regarding high definition television (HDTV) were made primarily by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). A brief effort by members of Congress and their bureaucratic and industrial allies to link HDTV to broader industrial policies was thwarted by the George Bush Administration between 1988 and 1990. The FCC's policies with respect to simulcasting and digital signals reflected the concern of that agency to protect the interests of consumers, broadcasters, and electronics manufacturers. The first two interests traditionally were protected by the FCC, whereas the protection of electronics was somewhat unusual and was influenced by perceptions of declining United States competitiveness. In addition, United States policymaking in this area depended strongly on the framing effect of policies adopted in Japan and Western Europe.