Winning the Third World - (New Cold War History) by Gregg A Brazinsky (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Winning the Third World examines afresh the intense and enduring rivalry between the United States and China during the Cold War. Gregg A. Brazinsky shows how both nations fought vigorously to establish their influence in newly independent African and Asian countries. By playing a leadership role in Asia and Africa, China hoped to regain its status in world affairs, but Americans feared that China's history as a nonwhite, anticolonial nation would make it an even more dangerous threat in the postcolonial world than the Soviet Union. Drawing on a broad array of new archival materials from China and the United States, Brazinsky demonstrates that disrupting China's efforts to elevate its stature became an important motive behind Washington's use of both hard and soft power in the "Global South."

Presenting a detailed narrative of the diplomatic, economic, and cultural competition between Beijing and Washington, Brazinsky offers an important new window for understanding the impact of the Cold War on the Third World. With China's growing involvement in Asia and Africa in the twenty-first century, this impressive new work of international history has an undeniable relevance to contemporary world affairs and policy making.

Review Quotes

"Brazinsky's deeply researched, narrowly focused, easy-flowing, and well-articulated book will be a tremendous asset to college undergraduates studying the Cold War and the current 'Thucydides Trap'. Highly recommended"--CHOICE

"Commendably ambitious. . . . A useful and eye-opening account of the multifaceted Sino-American rivalry in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East."--American Historical Review

"Essential reading for anyone interested in the future of U.S.-Chinese relations."--Foreign Affairs

"Sheds new light on the Cold War as a global contest for multiple players to win hearts and minds, and above all, to improve their international status."--Journal of American-East Asian Relations