The changing role and identity of the Nonaligned Movement (1955-1998)

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:The purpose of this study is to determine how the role and identity of the NonalignedMovement (NAM) changed during and after the Cold War. The demise of theMovement in the post-Cold War era, predicted by some scholars, is discussed.This study examines whether the Movement merely offered an alternative groupingduring the Cold War. The issue that becomes evident with respect to the Cold War isto show the terror it brought about and how the Third World became the battlegroundof the Superpowers.The question as to what extent the role played by the Movement defused the ColdWar is investigated. It is shown that the Movement sent emissaries to Washingtonand Moscow to resolve the German Crisis in 1961 and to reduce the arms race.A historical overview of the Movement is offered, which determines the role of Afro-Asianism in the birth of the Nonaligned Movement. It is explained that the 1955Bandung conference gathered leaders from independent African and Asian states -with different foreign policies - which created energies that in the following yearsgreatly affected Third World politics and the shaping of nonalignment. This studytraces also the role of different gatherings of the Movement up to the Durban Summitof 1998. At issue are also participating countries in the 1961 Belgrade Summit, whichare described, as well as the growth of the Movement's membership.Different goals of the Movement are examined. Some, like nuclear disarmament, theright to self-determination, peaceful coexistence, and the right for the Palestinians to ahomeland, were adopted during the Cold War and still remain valid. Others, likeprotection of the environment, and the struggle for human rights, were implementedduring the post-Cold War era. The détente allowed the Movement to launch a NewInternational Economic Order. An attempt is made to show the failure and success ofthe Movement in this respect.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University