This work fills a gap by providing a comprehensive, systemic account of Asian affairs, including South and Central Asia along with East Asia. It explains how Asia, hardly more than a geographic expression at the end of World War II, became the vibrant, assertive region that it is today. Major themes are the interplay between nationalism and Cold War bipolarity during the first postwar decades, the rise of largely export-led economies making the region increasingly the global center of gravity, and the search for regional integration. The book traces the origins and evolution of deep-rooted issues that remain high on the international agenda, such as the Taiwan question, the division of Korea and the threat of nuclear proliferation, the Kashmir issue and the nuclearized Indian-Pakistani conflict, and offers an account of the rise of China and its implications for regional and global security and prosperity.