A New World in the Making?

While prospects for scientific and technological development vary across Asian countries, most states in the region see science and technology as critical for the achievement of national goals and are developing new policies for research and innovation. This chapter examines indicators of the upward trend of technological development in Asia, and interprets these in light of the globalization of science and technology, the growth of global production networks in high technology fields, and the emergence of new science-based industries. Of special note is the growing international importance of China and India, and increasing intra-regional cooperation in science and technology. These developments create new challenges for the United States in reconciling the security interests of the war on terrorism with long-term interests in maintaining international leadership in science and engineering. 458 • Strategic Asia 2004–05