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Zbigniew Brzezinski

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The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy And Its Geostrategic Imperatives 1st Edition, Kindle Edition

by Zbigniew Brzezinski (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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As the twentieth century draws to a close, the United States has emerged as the world's only superpower: no other nation possesses comparable military and economic power or has interests that bestride the globe. Yet the critical question facing America remains unanswered: What should be the nation's global strategy for maintaining its exceptional position in the world? Zbigniew Brzezinski tackles this question head-on in this incisive and pathbreaking book.The Grand Chessboard presents Brzezinski's bold and provocative geostrategic vision for American preeminence in the twenty-first century. Central to his analysis is the exercise of power on the Eurasian landmass, which is home to the greatest part of the globe's population, natural resources, and economic activity. Stretching from Portugal to the Bering Strait, from Lapland to Malaysia, Eurasia is the ”grand chessboard” on which America's supremacy will be ratified and challenged in the years to come. The task facing the United States, he argues, is to manage the conflicts and relationships in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East so that no rival superpower arises to threaten our interests or our well-being.The heart of The Grand Chessboard is Brzezinski's analysis of the four critical regions of Eurasia and of the stakes for America in each arenaEurope, Russia, Central Asia, and East Asia. The crucial fault lines may seem familiar, but the implosion of the Soviet Union has created new rivalries and new relationships, and Brzezinski maps out the strategic ramifications of the new geopolitical realities. He explains, for example: Why France and Germany will play pivotal geostrategic roles, whereas Britain and Japan will not. Why NATO expansion offers Russia the chance to undo the mistakes of the past, and why Russia cannot afford to toss this opportunity aside. Why the fate of Ukraine and Azerbaijan are so important to America. Why viewing China as a menace is likely to become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Why America is not only the first truly global superpower but also the lastand what the implications are for America's legacy. Brzezinski's surprising and original conclusions often turn conventional wisdom on its head as he lays the groundwork for a new and compelling vision of America's vital interests. Once, again, Zbigniew Brzezinski provides our nation with a philosophical and practical guide for maintaining and managing our hard-won global power.

ISBN-13

978-0465027255
Edition

1st
Sticky notes

On Kindle Scribe
Publisher

Basic Books
Publication date

March 21, 2007
Language

English
File size

3623 KB
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Zbigniew Brzezinski, the National Security Advisor to President Jimmy Carter, is a counselor and trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a professor of American foreign policy at the School of Advanced International Studies, the Johns Hopkins University, both located in Washington, D.C. His many books include The Choice and The Grand Chessboard . He lives in Washington, D.C. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

The former national security advisor is still a believer in geopolitics after all these years. Like most foreign-policy aficionados weaned on the Cold War, Brzezinski (Out of Control, 1993) has been forced by the disintegration of the Soviet Union to broaden his perspective--but not very far. He sees the US as the only global superpower, but inability to maintain its hegemony indefinitely means that ``geostrategic skill'' is essential. To what end is not specified beyond the vague shaping of ``a truly cooperative global community'' that is in ``the fundamental interests of humankind,'' but in this genre, goals are commonly assumed rather than examined. In any case, Brzezinski casts Eurasia as the playing field upon which the world's fate is determined and analyzes the possibilities in Europe, the former Soviet Union, the Balkans (interpreted broadly), and the Far East. Like a grandmaster in chess, he plots his strategy several moves in advance, envisioning a three-stage development. Geopolitical pluralism must first be promoted to defuse challenges to America, then compatible international partners must be developed to encourage cooperation under American leadership, and finally the actual sharing of international political responsibility can be considered. The twin poles of this strategy are a united Europe in the West and China in the East; the central regions are more problematic and, for Brzezinski, not as critical in constructing a stable balance of power. This updated version of East-West geopolitics is worth taking seriously but it is also an amazing example of how a perspective can be revised without actually being rethought. (Radio satellite tour) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B005OSFX0A
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Basic Books; 1st edition (March 21, 2007)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 21, 2007
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3623 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray for textbooks ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 240 pages

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Brzezinski’s 1st ‘Bookend’: The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geostrategic Imperatives

Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2017

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Two of the title key words are very important to this review: ‘American Primacy’.

When an author writes a book, especially one that is political and deals with foreign affairs, this book captures events as a snapshot in time. As authors write later books, sometimes their views change.

Chessboard has been on university Poli Sci and Foreign Affairs/ Diplomatic Studies book lists for academic use since it was published, meaning that people who needed to know about and shape our foreign policy for the last 20 years have been familiar with it and have used it.

Dr. Brzezinski ‘s very interesting book is loaded with maps and other graphics to illustrate the changes that would be made in the future (from the time that he wrote it) to many countries world-wide, some of which would benefit from these changes, while others would not.

One of the most prescient, cogent, and almost incredible aspects about this book is that most of what it says would occur in world events at the time that it was written has, in fact, eventually happened!

In many ways, this book seems to have been ‘the script’ for many US foreign policy advisers to have been following, and it is understandable that it was followed, given that Brzezinski was a member of the CFR, a founding member of the Trilateral Commission, a Bilderberger, and an adviser to Presidents and other people that shape global policy. He did this both professionally and as a university professor.

The average person has no idea that a book like this exists. Because of this, I have bought multiple copies and given them out to others to help them understand why our current events are happening - by means of both major political parties, in a seemingly long-term weaving back and forth, throughout different political administrations.

As such, this would be one of the main Poli Sci/ diplomatic studies books to buy, read, re-read, and discuss with friends who also have inquiring minds.

I recommend that readers also buy Brzezinski’s last book: Strategic Vision: America and the Crisis of Global Power (2012), because it is the bookend to Chessboard. In fact, I often buy both and give them to friends to read, so that we can use our higher-order thinking and communication skills to have a discussion about what the author felt/ knew about the imperatives of the ‘American Primacy’ at the time that he wrote Chessboard in 1997. This should then allow us to compare his changed vision to what he says in Strategic Vision, only 15 years later.

This book (along with Strategic Vision) should be required reading to increase the Politics/ Foreign Affairs knowledge base for every inquiring mind, especially regarding the concept of ‘global order’ and how the US currently fits inside of this.

(Please see my other Brzezinski Amazon ‘bookend’review on Strategic Vision.)

19 people found this helpful

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P.K. Ryan

American Hegemony 101

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2007

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Basically, this book is the work of a mastermind geostrategist that outlines his view of America's global role, and what we need to do to maintain our global preeminence. The book is dated-it was published in 1997-but in a way this makes it interesting as we can see how some of Brzezinski's predictions have come to fruition.

First things first, Brzezinski is not some kind of devious Dr. Evil, and he has been highly critical of American actions under the current administration, so to say that he is some sort of pre-cursor to the Bush doctrine is unfair and inaccurate. Obviously, any book that refers to the potential fate of whole countries as a grand game of chess is certain to ruffle feathers, but this is basically what international relations experts do. This is a practical, unsentimental, and insightful argument for American global primacy and how we should use our power and influence for good. This is not to say that I agree with this worldview, I don't, but there's no need to get hysterical about it.

Brzezinski mostly concentrates on Eurasia, which according to him is the central battleground for competing global powers. Not only does it have plentiful natural resources, but its geographic location-the meeting point between Europe and Asia-essentially make it the center of the advanced world. Brzezinski fluently describes the potential problem spots in this area as well as potential rivals, allies and global aspirants. France, Germany, Russia, China, and to a lesser extent Turkey and Iran are all important world players in this chess game and for what it's worth, Brzezinski favors friendly relations with all of these countries. Unlike our current leaders, he opposes the demonization of any country and insists that all the aforementioned powers can be brought into a mutually beneficial relationship.

To be fair, Brzezinski argues that a sudden end to American supremacy would likely be disastrous to the region, causing massive instability and anarchy. He also claims that if we abandon our imperial role, this will only leave the door open for another, perhaps less benevolent power to take our place. He also claims that America's hegemony is best understood as a temporary substitute for a more equal global partnership. Of course this is all debatable, and it is fair to argue that imperialism is the cause of this region's problems, but Brzezinski sees the world as it is, not as it should be.

So whether you see Brzezinski as a benevolent visionary, or a maniacal plotter of world domination, this book is an excellent glimpse into the mind of a brilliant globalist and international strategist. Highly recommended to anyone with the slightest interest in international affairs.

7 people found this helpful

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Patrick

Un'analisi semplicemente magnifica

Reviewed in Italy on October 2, 2017

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La carriera di Brzezinski parla da sé. L'analisi è approfondita e gli accenti posti nei punti giusti. Puntuale e molto chiara, oserei dire illuminante per coloro che non sono estremamente competenti nel campo della geopolitica.

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julika winkler

Fascinating reading.

Reviewed in Canada on June 6, 2015

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The title of the book says it all. A primer in the political chessboard that is the US foreign policy. Brzezinski outlines in broad strokes
the template that should direct US foreign relations if the US wishes to remain the dominant world power.Considering this book was first published in 1997, it is amazing in its prescience regarding US policy today , especially vis a vie China, Russia, Ukraine and Europe. For readers interested in politics,this book makes fascinating reading.

Peter

Klare Ansage

Reviewed in Germany on April 23, 2014

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Das Buch zu lesen hatte ich mir schon vor Jahren vorgenommen; die Ereignisse in der Ukraine brachten es mir wieder in Erinnerung. Da die deutsche Übersetzung nur für einen horrenden Preis im Antiquariat zu haben war bestellte ich mir den englischen Text und erhielt von Amazon sogar ein Exemplar der Erstausgabe!
Ich frage mich allerdings, ob es jemals ein Deutscher wagen würde, ein vergleichbares Werk zu schaffen. Wir Deutschen haben keine geostrategischen, aber großräumige regionale Interessen, die zu analysieren und zu formulieren derzeit offenbar niemand bereit ist.

22 people found this helpful

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Florian ETIENNE

Un grand classique de la géopolitique

Reviewed in France on July 23, 2013

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The Grand Chessboard est un livre important pour comprendre le projet de l'impérialisme américain.
Il faut cependant lire ce livre avec un regard d' "initié" pour comprendre toutes les implications,
car Brzezinski cache toujours ses véritables intentions.
N'oublions pas que le processus d'hégémonie qu'il défend ne servira pas à promouvoir la "démocratie" mais à
installer la dictature des financiers occidentaux sur le monde, soit le "nouvel ordre mondial".
Ce n'est donc pas un livre pour les dupes.

3 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

This is a 'must read book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 19, 2009

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For anyone interested in the motivations that underpin current American foreign policy thinking, this is a 'must read' book. I came to it because of the number of times it was referenced by other authors and decided that it was time that I read it too. The title of the book explains its analytical purpose. It is very much about how the USA can continue to assert its primacy and the manner in which it needs to do so. Reading this analysis of America's global strategic imperatives, especially for the long-term control and security of oil supplies, shows why the USA is in Iraq, Afghanistan now and, latterly, why it is becoming more involved in Africa in countries where oil and minerals are yet to be exploited intensively. It also explains America's military, diplomatic and commercial presence in countries that encircle Russia and border on China.