ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the sources of change in Soviet policy; the degree of continuity and change; the impact of changing Soviet policy on the nations of the region; and the implications of changing Soviet policy for the United States. The United States and Japan, two of Moscow's formidable rivals in the region, were substantially increasing their economic relations with each other and with the other Pacific countries, and there was growing talk of a new Pacific Basin economic community from which the Soviet Union was excluded. The Soviet empire is facing a crisis of solvency. Mikhail Gorbachev must bring his commitments more into line with his limited resources. The key point to bear in mind in the connection is that the immensity of the Soviet economic crisis will almost certainly force Gorbachev to make even greater cuts in Soviet military spending than he has so far announced.
