"Though a central part of our modern history, Southeast Asia has tended to be relegated to the backwaters of U.S. foreign policy - except at moments of crisis. The July 1997 collapse of the Thai baht that threatened to destabilize the world financial markets was a chilling reminder of Southeast Asia's importance - and of the complex challenge it poses for the United States. The 1999 East Timor crisis was another tragic event that caught America off guard. The U.S. experience in Asia - where we have fought three wars in the past six decades - instructs that we ignore the region only at great cost." "The Independent Task Force on the United States and Southeast Asia sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations and chaired by former Senator Robert Kerrey, was formed to examine these issues. The Task Force found that instability or conflict in Southeast Asia - whether financial instability, genocide in Cambodia, turmoil in Indonesia, or potential conflict in the South China Sea - can rapidly become a matter of major global import that could ultimately threaten U.S. vital interests. The Task Force also concluded that U.S. policy toward Southeast Asia has been perceived in the region as hectoring, unnecessarily ad hoc, overbearing, and reactive." "The Task Force assessment and recommendations offer some guidance for more focused, better-integrated, and more valuable U.S. relations with Southeast Asia at a time of transition."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved