ABSTRACT
The events of 11 September 2001 triggered a dramatic change in American thinking on national defence and security. At a fundamental level, the 11 September attacks inflicted a sense of vulnerability on the US not felt since the Cuban missile crisis or the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. On a national level, 11 September altered Washington’s perceptions of threat and prompted a recalibration of strategic priorities, bringing the global war on terrorism to the fore as the primary focus of US defence planning and strategy. As a consequence of this recalibration, Asia has emerged as a critical theatre where combating terrorist cells and stemming the spread of radical Islam, together with fostering economic growth and healthy governance, have become a strategic imperative. This zone—Strategic Asia—is the focal point of the Strategic Asia Program at The National Bureau of Asian Research, whose annual volume is the main substantive source upon which the content of this analysis is based. 1
