Author: Zhang Xiaoming
Publisher: Shanghai People’s Publishing House, January 2025

Abstract

The Cold War and Its Legacy (Second Edition) is a revised and expanded version of the original 1998 edition. This edition incorporates updated references, added documentation, and rewritten sections. Centered on the theme of war and peace, the book integrates theory, history, and contemporary perspectives to describe, understand, and interpret the nearly half-century-long conflict and rivalry between the political, military, and economic blocs led respectively by the Soviet Union and the United States.

Major topics include the origins of the Cold War, East-West conflict case studies, nuclear weapons and their role in the Cold War, East-West economic relations, the role of the United Nations during the Cold War, the Third World and the Cold War, China’s involvement in the Cold War, and the end of the Cold War. The book also reflects on the Cold War’s legacy and its impact on the post–Cold War world.

Author Biography

Zhang Xiaoming received his bachelor’s (1985), master’s (1988), and doctoral degrees (1993) in international politics from Peking University, where he has been teaching since 1988. He is currently a professor at the School of International Studies at Peking University, specializing in the history of international relations and international relations theory.