Base politics : democratic change and the U.S. military overseas / Alexander Cooley.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [275]-299) and index.

1. Political Change and the Overseas American Military Presence -- 2. Overseas Military Basing Agreements: Issues and Methodology -- 3. The Philippines and Spain: In the Shadow of the Dictator -- 4. South Korea and Turkey: From Common Defense to Political Uncertainty -- 5. Okinawa and the Azores: Island Hosts and Triangular Politics -- 6. Japan and Italy: The Politics of Clientelism and One-Party Democratic Rule -- 7. Central Asia and the Global Defense Posture Review: New Bases, Old Politics -- 8. Conclusion: America's Past and Future Base Politics.

"In Base Politics, Alexander Cooley examines how domestic politics in different host countries, especially in periods of democratic transition, affect the status of U.S. bases and the degree to which the U.S. military has become a part of their local and national landscapes. Drawing on exhaustive field research in host nations across East Asia and Southern Europe, as well as the new postcommunist base hosts in the Black Sea and Central Asia, Cooley offers an original and provocative account of how and why politicians in host countries contest or accept the presence of the U.S. military on their territory." "Overseas bases, Cooley shows, are not merely installations that serve a military purpose. For host governments and citizens, U.S. bases are also concrete institutions and embodiments of U.S. power, identity, and diplomacy. Analyzing the degree to which overseas bases become enmeshed in local political agendas and interests, Base Politics is essential for anyone interested in understanding the extent - and limits - of America's overseas military influence."--BOOK JACKET.