Reviews
&"This book is an essential text for both students and scholars of civil-military relations. Woo's analysis of four key cases in East Asia � South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Indonesia �demonstrates that the role of the military is affected not only by the internal and external security environment, but also deeply influenced by economic variables and overall regime performance. The case studies are impressively grounded in a theoretical framework supported by extensive empirical research. A timely work in an era where many states struggle to consolidate democracy and secure civilian control of the military, Woo's book is a valuable contribution to both security studies and comparative politics.&" -M. Scott Solomon, University of South Florida, &"This book seeks to explain military politics in four democratizing countries in East Asia. It argues that the level of security threat combined with three intervening variables--strength of civilian leadership, military cohesiveness, and strength and orientation of civil society �explains changes in military participation in the politics of these countries since their inception as modern states. Security Challenges and Military Politics in East Asia is an important contribution to the study of civil-military relations and a welcome addition to the rather thin theoretically oriented literature on civil-military relations in Asia.&" - Muthiah Alagappa, Distinguished Senior Fellow, East-West Center, &"Security Challenges and Military Politics in East Asia makes a strong and interesting contribution to the literature on the role of the armed forces in East Asia. Its analysis of the four important cases it treats since the 1940s -- South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Indonesia is both theoretically informed and empirically rich. This highly systematic, well-structured, and informative book has much to offer to students of East Asia as well as to scholars of comparative civil-military relations more broadly.&" -Wendy Hunter, Associate Professor of Government, University of Texas at Austin, "Security Challenges and Military Politics in East Asia makes a strong and interesting contribution to the literature on the role of the armed forces in East Asia. Its analysis of the four important cases it treats since the 1940s -- South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Indonesia -- is both theoretically informed and empirically rich. This highly systematic, well-structured, and informative book has much to offer to students of East Asia as well as to scholars of comparative civil-military relations more broadly." -Wendy Hunter, Associate Professor of Government, University of Texas at Austin, &"In this thoughtful and meticulously researched book Professor Woo systematically compares civil-military relations in four important Asian states and explains why some succeed in democratizing while others come up short. Professor Woo uses extant theories and adds his own theoretical insights to explain how threats against the state originating in the domestic and/or international arenas affect the relationship between states and their armed forces. This is an excellent work of comparative politics and international relations and a long-awaited corrective of the conventional views on Asian security relations.&" -- Zoltan Barany, Frank C. Erwin, Jr. Professor of Government, University of Texas, "In this thoughtful and meticulously researched book Professor Woo systematically compares civil-military relations in four important Asian states and explains why some succeed in democratizing while others come up short. Professor Woo uses extant theories and adds his own theoretical insights to explain how threats against the state originating in the domestic and/or international arenas affect the relationship between states and their armed forces. This is an excellent work of comparative politics and international relations and a long-awaited corrective of the conventional views on Asian security relations." -- Zoltan Barany, Frank C. Erwin, Jr. Professor of Government, University of Texas, "This book is an essential text for both students and scholars of civil-military relations. Woo's analysis of four key cases in East Asia " South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Indonesia "demonstrates that the role of the military is affected not only by the internal and external security environment, but also deeply influenced by economic variables and overall regime performance. The case studies are impressively grounded in a theoretical framework supported by extensive empirical research. A timely work in an era where many states struggle to consolidate democracy and secure civilian control of the military, Woo's book is a valuable contribution to both security studies and comparative politics." -M. Scott Solomon, University of South Florida, "This book seeks to explain military politics in four democratizing countries in East Asia. It argues that the level of security threat combined with three intervening variables--strength of civilian leadership, military cohesiveness, and strength and orientation of civil society "explains changes in military participation in the politics of these countries since their inception as modern states. Security Challenges and Military Politics in East Asia is an important contribution to the study of civil-military relations and a welcome addition to the rather thin theoretically oriented literature on civil-military relations in Asia." - Muthiah Alagappa, Distinguished Senior Fellow, East-West Center