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Books > History > World history > From 1900 > Postwar, from 1945
This is the story of a life shaped by Egypt's national struggle and dominated by the conflict between the Arab world and Israel. It charts Sadat's progress from fanatical nationalist to Nasser's successor as President of Egypt, and from world statesman to tragic hero, who gave his life in the cause of peace. This study of one of the major figures in the struggle for peace in the Middle East, is of interest in the light of the ongoing peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.
What role have parliaments played in the dramatic changes occurring in Eastern and Central Europe? Adopting a common research framework, the contributors analyze in detail the role and operations of parliaments in ten of the new democracies. They focus on what determines their capacity to have some impact on public policy. They identify the significance of parliaments operating in often hybrid systems of government, with the relationship between the executive and legislature not well defined, and with an absence of constraining influence that typify western political systems.
Soviet Jewish Aliyah 1989-92 provides new insights into a period of fundamental change in Israel and the Middle East. It explains how the Israeli government failed to effectively handle the integration of new emigres from the Soviet Union, and how it alienated traditional Likud supporters among Oriental Jews in Israel. Clive Jones's argument is that, by placing its ideological commitment to the retention of the West Bank above other priorities, the Likud leadership made itself beholden to the United States for financial assistance which was then denied. The resulting fundamental change in the composition and orientation of the Israeli political leadership has had a major influence on the course of the Arab-Israeli peace process.
The third revolution in human history--after the neolithic agrarian
revolution and the modern industrial one--is the revolution of the
professionals. Harold Perkin's brilliant new book examines the
world's leading professional societies since World War II--the free
market economies of the United States, Britain, France, West
Germany, and Japan, and the defunct command economies of the Soviet
Union and East Germany--and their domination by professional
elites, notably state bureaucrats and corporate executives.
The Bretton Woods system ensured a quarter of a century of relative stability on the world's financial markets. The quarter of a century which has followed has brought financial chaos and excessive financial volatility. Exchange Rate Chaos: 25 Years of Financial and Consumer Democracy describes and compares US and British financial history during this period. It highlights: * similarites in financial developments between the two countries * consumer democracy: Have the wishes of consumers dominated exchange rate policy? * The decline of the small investor and the hegemony of financial institutions * How the floating exchange rates are manipulated to government advantage One of the few financial histories to deal with the postwar period, this book shows how financial developments have shaped contemporary society and politics.
Providing an invaluable introductory resource for students studying cyber warfare, this book highlights the evolution of cyber conflict in modern times through dozens of key primary source documents related to its development and implementation. This meticulously curated primary source collection is designed to offer a broad examination of key documents related to cyber warfare, covering the subject from multiple perspectives. The earliest documents date from the late 20th century, when the concept and possibility of cyber attacks became a reality, while the most recent documents are from 2019. Each document is accompanied by an introduction and analysis written by an expert in the field that provides the necessary context for readers to learn about the complexities of cyber warfare. The title's nearly 100 documents are drawn primarily but not exclusively from government sources and allow readers to understand how policy, strategy, doctrine, and tactics of cyber warfare are created and devised, particularly in the United States. Although the U.S. is the global leader in cyber capabilities and is largely driving the determination of norms within the cyber domain, the title additionally contains a small number of international documents. This invaluable work will serve as an excellent starting point for anyone seeking to understand the nature and character of international cyber warfare. Covers in detail one of the defining forms of conflict of the 21st century-cyber warfare will significantly impact virtually every American citizen over the next two decades Provides more than 90 primary source documents and matching analysis, allowing readers to investigate the underpinnings of cyber warfare Enables readers to see the development of different concepts of cyber warfare through its chronological organization Reflects the deep knowledge of an editor who is a noted expert in cyber warfare and has taught for the United States Air Force for more than a decade
This volume brings together a series of recent analyses spanning the whole period of Soviet domination of Eastern Europe. The essays, by Western, Russian and East European experts present a wide and varied picture of the period. The authors use newly available materials to investigate different aspects of Soviet-East European relations - party affairs, military and political co-ordination, cultural and mass media policies, as well as the crises and conflicts emerging from the relationship itself. Odd Arne Westad is the author of "Cold War and Revolution". Iver B. Neumann is the author of "Splittelse og Samling".
This book examines the implications of the Persian Gulf crisis in order to enhance our understanding of the post-Cold War international system. More than just another analysis of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the subsequent war, the book looks at the more general aspects of the use of force (political, economic, and military) evident in the Gulf crisis and what they can tell us about the emerging post-Cold War system. Contributors were selected on the basis of their ability to address specific questions and policy issues, and to cast their analyses at a broadly theoretical level. Each chapter looks at a different aspect of conflict in the international system and how that relates to the Persian Gulf crisis. Several aspects of the crisis and the new international system are examined such as the role of the United Nations, the utility of economic sanctions, the historical origin of the crisis itself, the potential sources of conflict and responses to it, and the changing nature of the use of military force. To the extent that the lessons found contradict the common wisdoms that emerged in the immediate aftermath of the war, many of the chapters challenge the trend to find sweeping generalizations in the Gulf crisis that bear directly on international relations in the 1990s and beyond. Civilian and military policymakers, as well as students and teachers of international studies, will find this book of interest.
This book analyzes the ways in which US policy toward Iraq was dictated by America's broader Cold War strategy between 1958 and 1975. While most historians have focused on "hot" Cold War conflicts such as Cuba, Vietnam, and Afghanistan, few have recognized Iraq's significance as a Cold War battleground. This book argues that US decisions and actions were designed to deny the Soviet Union influence over Iraq and to create a strategic base in the oil-rich Gulf region. Using newly available primary sources and interviews, this book reveals new details on America's decision-making toward and actions against Iraq during the height of the Cold War and shows where Iraq fits into the broader historiography of the Cold War in the Middle East. Further, it raises important questions about widely held misconceptions of US-Iraqi relations, such as the CIA's alleged involvement in the 1963 Ba'thist coup and the theory that the US sold out the Kurds in 1975.
The present work is basically an authentic account of historical events in Iran and the inside story of the Shah's regime. It concentrates on the underlying consideration which paved the way for the rise to power of Reza Shah and the untold reasons for the collapse of the Pahlavi dynasty. It also gives an account of a movement which overthrew the Shah under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini. It also aims at providing a comprehensive and objective consideration of the major contemporary issues.
Through conflicts in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan, this is the vivid memoir of British sniper Craig Harrison. It takes a tough mindset to be a successful sniper, to be able to dig in for days on your own as you wait for your target, to stay calm on a battlefield when you yourself have become the target the enemy most want to take out. Craig Harrison has what it takes and in November 2009 in Afghanistan, under intense pressure, he saved the lives of his comrades with the longest confirmed sniper kill - 2,475 metres, the length of twenty-five football pitches. In The Longest Kill, his unflinching autobiography, Craig catapults us into the heat of the action as he describes his active service in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan, and gives heart-stopping accounts of his sniper ops as he fought for his life on the rooftops of Basra and the barren hills of Helmand province. Craig was blown up by an IED in Afghanistan and left battling severe PTSD. After his identity was revealed in the press he also had to cope with Al Qaeda threats against him and his family. For Craig, the price of heroism has been devastatingly high.
Tracing the evolution of the Bulgarian state and its people, from the beginning of the Bulgarian national revival in the middle of the nineteenth century to the entry of the country into the European Union, Richard Crampton examines key political, social, and economic developments, revealing the history of a country which evolved from a backward and troublesome Balkan state to become a modern European nation. The formation of the first modern Bulgarian state in 1878 played a major role in Bulgaria's evolution, determining its stance in the two World Wars. Seeing the collapse as well as the establishment and evolution of communist rule, Bulgaria survived an often painful journey from monolithic authoritarianism to representative democracy and the market system. This book follows this journey, and analyses the development of Bulgaria's political culture, examining the emergence of radical movements, both agrarian and socialist, as well as looking at the role of religion and the position of minorities. Crampton highlights the problems and dilemmas created by the country's position situated between east and west, problems which might not be entirely solved by the country's admission to the EU.
Taking an historical approach, the author explores both how the UN has affected world politics and how the international political system has formed and limited the work of the Organization. He looks at why the UN was created, how it was affected by the Cold War and how successive Secretaries General struggled to find a role for themselves. The book shows how negative and even hostile views of the UN were changed by the end of the Cold War and by the UN-sponsored action in the Gulf, why the UN overreached itself in Bosnia and Somalia and how it failed to stop the genocide in Rwanda. While the main focus of this book is the role of the UN in promoting international peace and security, it also examines the work of the UN in other areas, including human rights and environmental protection.
"When the Berlin Wall opened unexpectedly on November 9, 1989, it marked a rupture of global significance. For Germany's national history the event has become, next to the defeat of 1945, the most significant date in collective memory. For Cold War Europe the Berlin Wall represented a symbol of border crisis and of difference and division. This interdisciplinary volume addresses multiple consequences of the fall of the Wall: looking back at the physical barrier, its demise, and how it has been mediated in film and television; detailing the processes of restoring and revitalizing the city and the country that had been torn asunder; recognizing the new challenges of integrating socially and politically old and new minorities; and identifying how a new European identity may emerge "after the Wall." The anthology is targeted at scholars and advanced students in history, German studies, sociology, art history, and related fields"--
Afghanistan, 2008. After their eighteen-month epic tour of Helmand Province, the troops of 3 Para are back. This time, the weight of experience weighs heavily on their shoulders. In April 2006 the elite 3 Para Battle Group was despatched to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, on a tour that has become a legend. All that summer the Paras were subjected to relentless Taliban attacks in one of the most gruelling campaigns fought by British troops in modern times. Two years later the Paras are back in the pounding heat of the Afghanistan front lines. The conflict has changed. The enemy has been forced to adopt new weaponry and tactics. But how much progress are we really making in the war against the insurgents? And is there an end in sight? In this searing account of 3 Para's return, bestselling author Patrick Bishop combines gripping, first-person accounts of front-line action with an unflinching look at the hard realities of our involvement in Afghanistan. Writing from a position of exclusive access alongside the Paras, he reveals the 'ground truth' of the mission our soldiers have been given. It's a sombre picture. But shining out from it are stories of courage, comradeship and humour, as well as a gripping account of an epic humanitarian operation through Taliban-infested country to deliver a vitally needed turbine to the Kajaki Dam. Frank, action-packed and absorbing, 'Ground Truth' is a timely and important book that will set the agenda for discussion of the Afghan conflict for years to come.
The Vietnam War was a thirty-year conflict that actually included
several wars, cost billions of dollars, resulted in thousands of
Vietnamese, French, and American deaths, and reverberated
throughout the international community. Now in this new concise
overview David Anderson lays out the origins, course, and
historical legacies of the war for students. The text discusses the
French colonial war and the Vietnamese phase of the conflict to
1975, but the primary focus of the text is on the American war in
Vietnam. The author examines military, political, diplomatic,
social and economic issues, both in Vietnam and the United States.
With its brevity, readability, and authoritative overview, this is
an ideal text for beginning or advanced undergraduate
students.
This project advances the existing theoretical work on the CNN effect, a claim that innovations in the speed and quality of technology create conditions in which the media acts as an independent factor with significant influence. It provides a novel interpretation of the factors that drove Western policy towards military intervention in this area.
The Truman administration's decision to embark on an arms build-up in 1950 was a critical event. For the first time other than a World War, the United States became a global military presence. Unlike the World Wars, in this instance the deployment lasted decades, altering the nature of the Cold War and the United States' global role. Such a decision deserves a book dedicated to understanding the strategy and politics behind it. The Beginnings of the Cold War Arms Race serves that purpose. The Beginnings of the Cold War Arms Race reviews the state of American military affairs in the late 1940s and describes the role of atomic power in American strategy. It also outlines the factional fighting within the Truman administration over military spending and deployments and considers the Truman administration's perceptions of Soviet military power and intentions. The author presents a fascinating account of the strategy and politics behind the Truman administration's decision to engage in a massive arms build-up that initiated the Cold War arms race.
The Sunday Times bestseller 'One of the most dramatic forgotten chapters of the war, as told in a new book by the incomparable Max Hastings' DAILY MAIL In August 1942, beleaguered Malta was within weeks of surrender to the Axis, because its 300,000 people could no longer be fed. Churchill made a personal decision that at all costs, the 'island fortress' must be saved. This was not merely a matter of strategy, but of national prestige, when Britain's fortunes and morale had fallen to their lowest ebb. The largest fleet the Royal Navy committed to any operation of the western war was assembled to escort fourteen fast merchantmen across a thousand of miles of sea defended by six hundred German and Italian aircraft, together with packs of U-boats and torpedo craft. The Mediterranean battles that ensued between 11 and 15 August were the most brutal of Britain's war at sea, embracing four aircraft-carriers, two battleships, seven cruisers, scores of destroyers and smaller craft. The losses were appalling: defeat seemed to beckon. This is the saga Max Hastings unfolds in his first full length narrative of the Royal Navy, which he believes was the most successful of Britain's wartime services. As always, he blends the 'big picture' of statesmen and admirals with human stories of German U-boat men, Italian torpedo-plane crews, Hurricane pilots, destroyer and merchant-ship captains, ordinary but extraordinary seamen. Operation Pedestal describes catastrophic ship sinkings, including that of the aircraft-carrier Eagle, together with struggles to rescue survivors and salvage stricken ships. Most moving of all is the story of the tanker Ohio, indispensable to Malta's survival, victim of countless Axis attacks. In the last days of the battle, the ravaged hulk was kept under way only by two destroyers, lashed to her sides. Max Hastings describes this as one of the most extraordinary tales he has ever recounted. Until the very last hours, no participant on either side could tell what would be the outcome of an epic of wartime suspense and courage.
In the aftermath of World War II, the United States stood at a
precipice. The forces of modernity unleashed by the war had led to
astonishing advances in daily life, but technology and mass culture
also threatened to erode the country's traditional moral character.
As award-winning historian George M. Marsden explains in "The
Twilight of the American Enlightenment," postwar Americans looked
to the country's secular, liberal elites for guidance in this
precarious time, but these intellectuals proved unable to
articulate a coherent common cause by which America could chart its
course. Their failure lost them the faith of their constituents,
paving the way for a Christian revival that offered America a firm
new moral vision--one rooted in the Protestant values of the
founders.
'This is a terrifying book that should be required reading for every student of twentieth-century history. It is written by an author burning with anger at what was done in Vietnam, but the evidence is so clear and the documentation so meticulously marshalled that it cannot be brushed aside as just another example of anti-American paranoia.' - Tony Benn, MP This book focuses on the 'Vietnam Syndrome' - the effects for the United States of the American defeat in the Vietnam War. It argues that a full understanding of the Syndrome requires a proper appreciation of key shaping elements in Vietnamese and American history. Attention is given to the racial genocide that attended the birth of the United States, to US imperialism and capitalism, and to the Cold War framework. The nature of America as a plutocracy is emphasised, followed by profiles of policy options and three specific issues: post-war Vietnam, El Salvador and Iraq.
After 1945, Britain maintained a great chain of overseas military outposts stretching from the Suez Canal to Singapore. Commonly termed the 'east of Suez' role, this chain had long been thought to be crucial for the country's security and its vitality. Nonetheless, British leaders eventually decided to abandon this network of bases. This study provides a comprehensive explanation of this pivotal decision, while also offering insight into the processes of foreign policy change and the decline of great powers.
In 1945, Germany's cities lay in ruins, destroyed by Allied bombers that left major architectural monuments badly damaged and much of the housing stock reduced to rubble. At the war's end, observers thought that it would take forty years to rebuild, but by the late 1950s West Germany's cities had risen anew. The housing crisis had been overcome and virtually all important monuments reconstructed, and the cities had reclaimed their characteristic identities. Everywhere there was a mixture of old and new: historic churches and town halls stood alongside new housing and department stores; ancient street layouts were crossed or circled by wide arteries; old city centers were balanced by garden suburbs laid out according to modern planning principles. In the Wake of War examines the questions raised by this remarkable feat of urban reconstruction. Jeffry M. Diefendorf explains who was primarily responsible for the reconstruction, what accounted for the speed of rebuilding, and how priorities were set and decisions acted upon. He argues that in such crucial areas as architectural style, urban planning, historic preservation, and housing policy, the Germans drew upon personnel, ideas, institutions, and practical experiences from the Nazi and pre-Nazi periods. Diefendorf shows how the rebuilding of West Germany's cities after 1945 can only be understood in terms of long-term continuities in urban development. The first comprehensive book in English on Germany's reconstruction, In the Wake of War examines postwar urban reconstruction from many perspectives, including architecture, historic restoration, housing, town planning and law, and it consistently interprets the features of Germanreconstruction within the context of continuous developments in these areas since the 1920s. This study will appeal to architects and urban planners as well as historians.
These riveting first-hand accounts of Turkish soldiers who have fought in the nasty internal war against the Kurds speak to universals: the shock of entering military life and the traumas of warfare; the changes in personality and relations with family and friends, the lingering emotional effects of violence, and the difficulties in returning to the 'real world', to borrow a phrase from Vietnam vets. Corruption, disillusionment and despair alternate with the small victories of humanity overcoming hellish conditions. Mater's reportage is in the best tradition of revealing the surreal, illuminating the universal truth of war's devastation. At a time when American troops are again caught in a vicious insurgency, the Kurdish issue has high visibility, and Turkey is a major actor in the Middle East, the experiences of these former soldiers resonate.
Eastern Europe has been in ongoing crisis since the breakup of the Soviet Union. This important book provides basic, up-to-date information on the events and background that have led up to the current crisis, and the volume includes helpful maps and photographs of key figures and scenes of everyday life. Librarians will value this reference tool as a reliable, informative source for students and others trying to understand today's conflicts. The volume covers all of the countries that formed the colonial empire of the Soviet Union--Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), Hungary, Poland, Romania, and former Yugoslavia. In an introductory essay, Held begins with an overview of the region's general characteristics and history prior to 1945. The volume is then divided into separate sections on each country. Each section includes basic information about the country, a map, and a chronology followed by entries, arranged alphabetically, on people, places, political parties, and the events that have shaped the country's history since 1945. The book is the only comprehensive one-volume dictionary on East European personalities, politicians, and history since 1945. |
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