Follow the Leader, Lose the Region

Charting a Canadian Strategy for the Asia-Pacific

By Jeff Reeves
Categories: Political Science, International Political Science, Regional & Cultural Studies, Asian Studies, Canadian Political Science, International Relations
Publisher: UBC Press
Hardcover : 9780774868594, 230 pages, March 2023
Paperback : 9780774868600, 230 pages, November 2023
Ebook (PDF) : 9780774868617, 230 pages, March 2023
Ebook (EPUB) : 9780774868624, 230 pages, March 2023
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Table of contents

Introduction: Framing a Canadian Strategy in the Asia-Pacific

1 The Basics: A Critical Examination of Western Narratives on Asia

2 Asian Counter-Narratives: Indo-Pacific, Rules-Based Order, and Freedom and Openness

3 Asian Counter-Narratives: Western State Identity in the Asia-Pacific

4 Asian Narratives on Asia’s Security Order: Western Hegemony as a Source of Instability

5 Chinese Counter-Narratives: The Chinese Communist Party, Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Foreign Affairs

6 Mapping a Canadian Policy Approach to Asia: National Interests, Asian Narratives, and Network Analysis

Conclusion: Toward Omnidirectional Diplomacy and Strategic Integration

Notes; Selected Bibliography; Index

Description

As competition among the traditional great powers in the Asia region intensifies, Canada faces a stark choice: Should it align its foreign policy with the US-led free and open Indo-Pacific strategy? Shared values give Canada a clear incentive to follow the lead of the United States and Western-aligned democracies, but Jeffrey Reeves presents the case for a foreign policy based on understanding how Asia sees itself. He draws on Asian sources to demonstrate Western misunderstandings of regional developments and to outline alternative, regionally based policy options. Follow the Leader, Lose the Region urges the Canadian government to pivot away from the policies of its Western allies in order to chart an independent course that better serves its interests.