military presence in the united states

With President Hu Jintao's November 2004 visit to Latin America, China signaled to the rest of the world its growing interest in the region. Indeed, this recent encroachment on the United States' backyard has awakened new concerns in U.S. policy circles. On the one hand, this development could challenge U.S. primacy in the Western Hemisphere. On the other hand, some observers view China's courtship of Latin America as a natural step due to China's need for long-term commodities and energy solutions.

The trade partnership between China and the U.S. symbolizes one of the most important bilateral relationships in the twenty first century. In light of this relationship, will China's move to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties with Latin America heighten the level of tension between these two powerhouses?

China's Expansion into the Western Hemisphere presents a revealing and multilayered exposition of this triangular relationship and the motivations of each player. To that end, experts from Latin America, China, Europe, and the United States evaluate the ramifications of China's emergence as a world power. Several chapters craft a framework for anticipating the economic and energy security aspect of the China-Latin American relationship. This absorbing analysis of China's hemispheric policy provides an in-depth look at a particularly sensitive aspect of its peaceful rise.

Contributors: Christopher Alden (London School of Economics), Robert Devlin (ECLAC), Francisco González (Johns Hopkins University-SAIS), Monica Hirst (Torcuato Di Tella University), Joshua Kurlantzick (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace), Xiang Lanxin (Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva), Luisa Palacios (Medley Global Advisors), Jiang Shixue (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences), Barbara Stallings (Brown University), Juan Tokatlian (San Andrés University).

The United States Marine Corps: A Chronology, 1775 to the Present touches upon all aspects of the Continental and U.S. Marine Corps since their inception. All major battles in all major wars are covered, along with innumerable smaller clashes and deployments abroad. The evolution of amphibious doctrine, so essential to Marine Corps activity in the 20th and 21st centuries, is likewise covered in detail, along with the rise of Marine Corps aviation.

Through a diary of daily occurrences proffered in the context of greater historical events, this chronology captures the entire sweep of U.S. Marine Corps history. It follows the Corps from the American Revolution to the halls of Montezuma and the shores of Tripoli, through World Wars I and II, and up to Operation IRAQI FREEDOM and Operation ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan. Entries delineate battlefield events, but also significant political and administrative changes that have affected the Marines. Notable events in the careers of generals and other individuals are included as well.

On April 10th, 2003, the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, faced with the task of seizing the presidential palace in downtown Baghdad, ran headlong into what Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North called, "the worst day of fighting for U.S. Marines." Hiding in buildings and mosques, wearing civilian clothes, and spread out for over a mile, Saddam Hussein's militants rained down bullets and rocket propelled grenades on the 1st Battalion. But when the smoke of the eight-hour battle cleared, only one Marine had lost his life. Some said the 1st Battalion was incredibly lucky. But in the hearts and minds of the Marines who were there, there was no question. God had brought them miraculously through that battle.

As the 1st Battalion's chaplain, Lieutenant Carey Cash had the unique privilege of seeing firsthand, from the beginning of the war to the end, how God miraculously delivered, and even transformed, the lives of the men of the 1st Battalion.