Friends And The Present War Situation

Great friendship existed between the United States and Imperial Russia during the nineteenth century. The Old World Russian autocracy supported the young New World democracy because of the emerging U.S. role as a bulwark against Great Britain's ambitions, in Asia and in the North Pacific Ocean region especially. In fact, when the American Civil War threatened to divide the United States, Russia alone among the European great powers gave no aid or comfort to the seceding states. The surprise 1863 arrival of squadrons of Russian warships and thousands of Russian sailors in New York and San Francisco proved fortuitous, coming when the Union feared British and French intervention on the Confederacy's behalf. C. Douglas Kroll, using both Russian and U.S. documents, investigates why the Russian Pacific Squadron came to San Francisco, a port of departure for California and Nevada gold headed east; what happened during its nearly year-long visit; and how its presence influenced events. With the units of the U.S. Navy's small Pacific Squadron widely dispersed and Confederate commerce raiders on the loose, the Russians' arrival suggested to on-lookers that they intended to defend the Union against interference. Whether actively supporting the Union or training and refitting or both, the Russian officers and sailors endeared themselves to San Francisco's citizens. Parades and balls, as well as dinners hosted by both sides, helped San Franciscans overlook the various differences they had with their Russian visitors. Kroll gives us a thorough examination of the Russians' visit and its social, diplomatic, and military impact.

Excerpt from The War for Peace: The Present War as Viewed by Friends of Peace This is no time for darkening counsel by words. Since it is true that in time of irreconcilable conflict in welfares the lesser must succumb to the greater; since it is true that we are now faced with an irreconcilable conflict between the will to might of the German Government and the will to right of the United States; since we believe it to be true that there is therefore an irreconcilable conflict between the welfare of kings and the welfare of peoples; since it is true, as we believe, that a tri umphant Germany would now destroy every hope we have for a world governed by justice, and that what we mean by civiliza tion is therefore hanging at this hour in the balance; since it is true that our country is, by the vote of our representatives duly elected, at war with the Imperial German Government that that civilization may be; since it is true that our boys are now by the thousands on the firing lines of France and that they are already dying there for us; since it is true that our lawfully created representatives are, at our bidding, bending every effort to bring the German Government to terms and to end the destruo tion; since these things are true, terribly true, this certainly is no time for a loyalty of squinting constructions, or for behavior of a doubtful sort on the part of any one within the United States. Now of all times in our history is the time for confining ourselves within the modest limits of order. We must believe in law. Without law there is chaos. Law is the instrument by which the majority, individually weak and right-minded, control the few individually aggressive and criminal. Where there is no, law, might and cunning prevail. Laws are rules of conduct which we are all morally bound to obey. If we will to live within the United States we bv that act tacitly agree to obey the laws of the United States. If we give aid and comfort to Germany in these times, we disobey the most fundamental law of our land. When our chosen leaders are, in accordance with the law, bending every effort to bring the German Government to terms, for any Of us to harass these our representatives in authority is to stir up the dust, befog the issues, prolong the horror, give encouragement to Germany, do violence to law, and toy with treason. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

How nations move from war to peace Is the world destined to suffer endless cycles of conflict and war? Can rival nations become partners and establish a lasting and stable peace? How Enemies Become Friends provides a bold and innovative account of how nations escape geopolitical competition and replace hostility with friendship. Through compelling analysis and rich historical examples that span the globe and range from the thirteenth century through the present, foreign policy expert Charles Kupchan explores how adversaries can transform enmity into amity—and he exposes prevalent myths about the causes of peace. Kupchan contends that diplomatic engagement with rivals, far from being appeasement, is critical to rapprochement between adversaries. Diplomacy, not economic interdependence, is the currency of peace; concessions and strategic accommodation promote the mutual trust needed to build an international society. The nature of regimes matters much less than commonly thought: countries, including the United States, should deal with other states based on their foreign policy behavior rather than on whether they are democracies. Kupchan demonstrates that similar social orders and similar ethnicities, races, or religions help nations achieve stable peace. He considers many historical successes and failures, including the onset of friendship between the United States and Great Britain in the early twentieth century, the Concert of Europe, which preserved peace after 1815 but collapsed following revolutions in 1848, and the remarkably close partnership of the Soviet Union and China in the 1950s, which descended into open rivalry by the 1960s. In a world where conflict among nations seems inescapable, How Enemies Become Friends offers critical insights for building lasting peace.