Track‐II cooperative regional security efforts: Lessons from the limited nuclear‐weapons‐free zone for Northeast Asia*

Abstract

The post‐Cold‐War era has seen a proliferation of Track‐II, or unofficial, efforts to enhance cooperative regional security in many regions of the world. These efforts have had mixed results, but the lessons learned from their experiences may be useful to analysts and practitioners alike. The Center for International Strategy, Technology, and Policy at the Georgia Institute of Technology initiated a Track‐II effort in 1991 aimed at enhancing cooperative regional security in Northeast Asia through the establishment of a Limited Nuclear Weapons Free Zone in Northeast Asia (LNWFZ‐NEA). Under the direction of one author of this article (J.E.E.), this initiative has evolved through several phases. Beginning with the reasoning behind the birth of this initiative, the authors trace the evolution of this Track‐II process through the opening presentations of the concept to international experts, to the current status of the process. Assessments of the changing phases of the process are highlighted with lessons learned from the formation of a Senior Panel, and later Expanded Senior Panel, to meetings held in Atlanta, Buenos Aires, Bordeaux, Moscow, and Helsinki. The authors include insights into the negotiating process and the security environment in Northeast Asia.