The United States has had a thin record of accomplishments in Northeast Asia for most of the last 100-plus years. Many failures in U.S. foreign policy in that area originate from not knowing the background of the countries involved and not understanding their contemporary interests and needs. It is as though American knowledge and expertise began anew each time there has been an issue. Yet, it did not have to be that way then – and it does not have to be that way now.

AN ‘AHA’ MOMENT

The single-most telling factor contributing to the failure of U.S. foreign policy