Reliability And Alliance Interdependence
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Reliability and Alliance Interdependence
Author: Iain D. Henry
language: en
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Release Date: 2022-05-15
In Reliability and Alliance Interdependence, Iain D. Henry argues for a more sophisticated approach to alliance politics and ideas of interdependence. It is often assumed that if the United States failed to defend an ally, then this disloyalty would instantly and irrevocably damage US alliances across the globe. Henry proposes that such damage is by no means inevitable and that predictions of disaster are dangerously simplistic. If other allies fear the risks of military escalation more than the consequences of the United States abandoning an ally, then they will welcome, encourage, and even praise such an instance of disloyalty. It is also often assumed that alliance interdependence only constrains US policy options, but Henry shows how the United States can manipulate interdependence to set an example of what constitutes acceptable allied behavior. Using declassified documents, Henry explores five case studies involving US alliances with South Korea, Japan, the Republic of China, the Philippines, Australia, and New Zealand. Reliability and Alliance Interdependence makes a substantial contribution to our understanding of how America's alliances in Asia function as an interdependent system.
Reliability and Alliance Politics
Throughout the Cold War, US officials feared that Washington's disloyalty to one ally would automatically cause other allies to doubt America's security reliability. These doubts could prompt allies to adopt policies of neutrality, or even defect to the Communist bloc. This dissertation challenges the conventional wisdom - that alliance interdependence is underpinned by loyalty - by proposing the "alliance audience effect". The alliance audience effect framework shows that discrete alliance commitments can be practically interdependent, but that this interdependence is not underpinned by loyalty. Through an investigation of Cold War case studies, using a process tracing methodology and archival research, this dissertation argues that US allies in Asia were unconcerned about whether America was loyal to other allied states. Instead, they monitored America's behaviour in order to reassure themselves that the US was reliable: that their own alliance did not pose risks of either abandonment or entrapment. When allies feared abandonment, they encouraged America to solidify its presence in Asia and adopt a more aggressive posture. But when allies feared entrapment, they encouraged conciliatory US policies and worked to restrain Washington, thus reducing the risk of conflict. In some cases, American disloyalty to one ally was welcomed, or even encouraged, by other allies, as this disloyalty better served their own interests. Like the adage that "one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter", this dissertation shows that one state's disloyal ally can be another state's reliable ally. Because US allies have different interests, they will have different views of American behaviour: one ally might praise an instance of US disloyalty as proof of reliability, while another ally might condemn Washington for unreliability. In short, reliability is not synonymous with loyalty, and America does not have a collective alliance loyalty reputation. Beyond the allied perspective, this research also demonstrates how the United States managed its alliances and used alliance interdependence to achieve its own ends. This dissertation's findings have relevance for the alliance politics literature, theories about international reputation, and the practical management of alliances.
Alliance Decision-Making in the South China Sea
The combination of rising Chinese power and longstanding territorial disputes has drawn increased attention and threats to the Asia-Pacific region. Five smaller powers contest Beijing’s claims; Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and Indonesia, with the United States viewed as the most likely counterbalance to coercive behavior towards them. However, only one of these five states - the Philippines -has maintained a guarantee of protection through alliance with the US. What factors have influenced state decisions to form security relationships with Washington, and what does the evolution of these factors portend for future security relationships in the South China Sea? Using research on U.S. policy preferences based on recently declassified material, this book produces conclusions previously inaccessible beyond classified forums. The author surveys recent alliance theory developments to examine relationships between claimant states and the US, explores historical bilateral relations and considers the future of regional security relationships. This book contributes to the fields of security studies, foreign policy and international relations and expands beyond traditional concepts of defense alliances to explore security cooperation along a spectrum from allied to aligned to non-aligned.