Characterizing the Bush administration's foreign policy of zigzagging, dysfunctional initiatives and self-inflicted wounds a "doctrine" seems a bit of a stretch. Sadly, aggressive rhetoric, hegemonic delusions and clumsy handling of allies have decisively trumped national interests in the region.
Good relations with South Korea and Japan have grown frayed, North Korea has grown bolder and more dangerous, China is more alienated while Indonesia represents a missed opportunity for building better relations with the world's largest Muslim nation.
This is not a book for those seeking a balanced assessment of U.S. foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific under President George W. Bush. Here readers encounter a no-holds barred critical assessment that makes for grim reading precisely because the contributors from around the region demonstrate just how much U.S. interests have been imperiled now and in the future by Team Bush. There is general agreement among the authors that the Bush Doctrine's reliance on military options, preemptive war and unilateralism is destabilizing the global order.