Collateral damage : Sino-Soviet rivalry and the termination of the Sino-Vietnamese alliance / Nicholas Khoo.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Khoo, Nicholas.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Sino-Vietnamese Conflict, 1979.

China--Foreign relations--Soviet Union.

China.

Soviet Union--Foreign relations--China.

Soviet Union.

China--Foreign relations--Vietnam.

Vietnam--Foreign relations--China.

Vietnam.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (281 p.)

Place of Publication:

New York : Columbia University Press, c2011.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Although the Chinese and the Vietnamese were Cold War allies in wars against the French and the Americans, their alliance collapsed and they ultimately fought a war against each other in 1979. More than thirty years later the fundamental cause of the alliance's termination remains contested among historians, international relations theorists, and Asian studies specialists. Nicholas Khoo brings fresh perspective to this debate. Using Chinese-language materials released since the end of the Cold War, Khoo revises existing explanations for the termination of China's alliance with Vietnam, arguing that Vietnamese cooperation with China's Cold War adversary, the Soviet Union, was the necessary and sufficient cause for the alliance's termination. He finds alternative explanations to be less persuasive. These emphasize nonmaterial causes, such as ideology and culture, or reference issues within the Sino-Vietnamese relationship, such as land and border disputes, Vietnam's treatment of its ethnic Chinese minority, and Vietnam's attempt to establish a sphere of influence over Cambodia and Laos. Khoo also adds to the debate over the relevance of realist theory in interpreting China's international behavior during both the Cold War and post-Cold War eras. While others see China as a social state driven by nonmaterial processes, Khoo makes the case for viewing China as a quintessential neorealist state. From this perspective, the focus of neorealist theory on security threats from materially stronger powers explains China's foreign policy not only toward the Soviet Union but also in relation to its Vietnamese allies.

Contents:

China's cold war alliance with Vietnam : historical and theoretical significance

Breaking the ring of encirclement : Sino-Soviet alliance termination and the Chinese communists' Vietnam policy, 1964-1968

A war on two fronts : the Sino-Soviet conflict during the Vietnam War and the betrayal thesis, 1968-1973

The politics of victory : Sino-Soviet relations and the road to Vietnamese unification, 1973-1975

The end of an "indestructible friendship" : Soviet resurgence and the termination of the Sino-Vietnamese alliance, 1975-1979

When allies become enemies.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9786613136015

9781283136013

1283136015

9780231521635

0231521634

OCLC:

741453652