ABSTRACT
The massive Soviet buildup on the Chinese frontier was either an overreaction to the Chinese threat or a political blunder intended to cow the Chinese into accommodation. But whatever its motivation, the Soviet buildup so close to the Chinese border has driven Peking into the arms of the United States, has made much more difficult any possibility of a Sino-Soviet accommodation, and has convinced many countries, in addition to China, that the Soviet Union has expansionist aims. Soviet policy towards China during the past two decades has been a policy of overreaction. The Russians have been short on patience and long on pressure tactics. The one potentially bright spot for Soviet-Japanese relations lies in the common interest that both countries have in the development of Siberian natural resources. Moscow has at least two urgent reasons for wanting to develop the Soviet Far East rapidly.
