This book explores the transformation of the American-led alliances, as well as of US allies’ responses to potential American disengagement from regional security amid the rising Russian and Chinese threats. The post-Cold War international order has led to three challenges for the West. The first challenge was the ending of the Cold War, which had served as the fundamental rationale of the US-centred alliance systems in both Europe and Asia. The second challenge was that while the fear of US disengagement in the post-Cold War era was initially about its political willingness, the relative decline of the US has gradually turned the question into that of capability. And the third challenge is that for the first time since very long, a war in which one of the great (nuclear) powers is involved takes place on European territory. In Europe, the immediate consequence of the war has been a strengthening of NATO. In Asia and the Indo-Pacific, regional reactions to the war have been much more muted, for the division between “friends and foes” remains less clear-cut than in Europe. The chapters in this volume bridge the dynamics in the European and Asian theatres and provide a comparative framework for examining security alignments amid the shifting strategic context of the Indo-Pacific. With 4 new chapters and a revised Introduction, this book will be of great interest to students and researchers of Politics and International Relations, Asian and European studies. The other chapters were originally published in Asian Affairs.

This original and detailed collection explores how regional actors deal with uncertainties that are inherent to the current geopolitical situation in East Asia. The contributors collectively demonstrate that strategic uncertainty has become a major factor in the shaping of the security order in East Asia.