Politics and Economics in Southeast Asia

Extract

South of China, east of India, and above the Antipodes, Southeast Asia may be more of a “geographic expression” than a “region”; perhaps, however, it deserves analysis on a regional basis. Certain similarities unite these countries, even though a consciousness on the part of the peoples of the area that they are a “region” has been slow to develop; Dien Bienphu seemed nearer to Washington than to Singapore. One of the volumes reviewed here uses the term “low-pressure area” to explain the fact that historically the national states of Southeast Asia have not been strong, and that the area has been subjected to great pressure from more densely populated countries to the north and west.