Cold War clouds remain over the Asia-Pacific region

China probably represents the most difficult case in this regard. Almost all strategists concur that peaceful evolution is the best choice for the country to change but many people in the same group simply do not want to wait for the eventual results to emerge. And they are not shy of going to war for the change.

The region is more insecure than before because political equilibrium and military balance is breaking down, primarily because policy makers have not given time a chance, but have instead rushed about as if this can bring about "the end of history." The great-leap forward approach for societal and political change, interventionist impulse for realizing human rights objective, effort to achieve and employ absolute military superiority over adversaries and pressure for market-opening according to free trade liberalism. All this generates enormous anxiety in the region and forces a new security realignment.

The approach of "giving time a chance" is not the preferred option, since it requires short-term tolerance of dictators. However, there may be no better alternatives as far as ordinary people are concerned.

You Ji is a senior lecturer (由冀) in political science at the University of New South Wales in Australia. This article is abstracted from his paper presented at the 1999 Asia-Pacific Security Forum.