Asian Military Evolutions

This book explores civil-military relations in Asia. With chapters on individual countries in the region, it provides a comprehensive account of the range of contemporary Asian practices under conditions of abridged democracy, soft authoritarianism or complete totalitarianism.

This book explores civil–military relations in Asia. With chapters on individual countries in the region, it provides a comprehensive account of the range of contemporary Asian practices under conditions of abridged democracy, soft authoritarianism or complete totalitarianism.Through its analysis, the book argues that civil–military relations in Asia ought to be examined under the concept of ‘Asian military evolutions’. It demonstrates that while Asian militaries have tried to incorporate standard, Western-derived frameworks of civil–military relations, it has been necessary to adapt such frameworks to suit local circumstances. The book reveals how this has in turn led to creative fusions and novel changes in making civil–military relations an asset to furthering national security objectives.

1. Introduction: Asian Military Evolutions – Entrenching Varieties of Civil–Military Relations and Their Security Initiatives in Asia - Alan Chong and Nicole JennePart 1: Southeast Asia2. Fostering Developmental Guardianship: The Case of Myanmar’s Tatmadaw - Adhi Priamarizki3. Business as Usual despite Reform: The Indonesian Military under Jokowi - Dahlia Gratia Setiyawan4. Militarizing Governance: Informal Civil–Military Relations and Democratic Erosion in the Philippines - Aries A. Arugay5. Mind the Gap: The Curious Case of Everyday Civil–Military Relations in Singapore - Jun Yan Chang and Shu Huang Ho6. The Role of the Malaysian Armed Forces in Defence Diplomacy: A Foreign Policy Outworking of Civil–Military Relations in Malaysia - David Han7. The Architecture and Evolution of Civil–Military Relations in Vietnam - Alexander L. Vuving8. The Stubborn Illiberalism and Trialectical Dynamics of Thailand’s Civil–Military Relations - Gregory V. Raymond9. Peacekeeping: An Emerging Area of Southeast Asia’s Defence and Security Cooperation? - Nicole JennePart 2: Northeast Asia10. Subjective Conditional Control: Return of the Strongman in China’s Party–Army Relations - James Char11. Military and Politics in Patrimonial North Korea - Jongseok Woo12. Curing National Insecurity through Developmental Authoritarianism in South Korea’s Civil–Military Relations - Il Woo Lee and Alan Chong13. Image Makeover: The Military Evolution of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces - Yee- Kuang HengPart 3: South Asia14. The Deficient Evolution of Civil–Military Relations in India - Harsh V. Pant and Tuneer Mukherjee15. Defence Diplomacy and Civil–Military Relations: The Case of Bangladesh - Rashed Uz Zaman16. Conclusion: Asian Military Evolutions as a Contribution to Civil–Military Relations Thought - Alan Chong and Nicole Jenne