International cooperation in establishing a regional order in Northeast Asia

Northeast Asia remains largely a geographic referent, not a political entity or even an economic unit. To explore the reasons why this region lags far behind other areas of the world in developing a regional identity and to explore areas where international cooperation is both desirable and possible, the Center for East Asian Studies of the Monterey Institute of International Studies held an international conference in June 1997, with participants from China, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia, Russia, and the United States. This article introduces the presentations and discussion at this conference and explores the prospects for regional cooperation. It identifies historical and contemporary sources of obstacles to regional cooperation, including those in the political, economic, security, and civilizational/cultural realms. It notes the fluidity and uncertainty in major power relations since the end of the Cold War and discusses the regional security implications of growing economic ties among the Northeast Asian countries. It also examines the potentials and limitations of regional cooperation at the nongovernmental level. Finally, it calls for further collaborative international research and discussion of problems, both continuing and emerging, that stand in the way of regional cooperation, particularly the issues of nationalism vs regionalism, political costs of economic interdependence, environmental security, and demographic changes and their economic, political, and security implications for the region.