In the wake of what many see as an overwhelming American defeat in Indochina, East Asia is ihe scene of dramatic changes. There is unfolding a new geopolitical configuration that looks very much like an abdication to, and accommodation with, communism. There is, moreover, a pervasive consensus that the U.S. is suffering from a paralysis of power that will cause it to abandon its Asian allies in future crises. This consensus has grown in spite of the concerted efforts of the Ford Administration to convince the international community, including Communist powers, that America still has the will to abide by its obligations.

Was U.S. policy, and the withdrawal of American forces from Southeast Asia, responsible for the sudden collapse of the pro-Western governments of Indochina and the subsequent wave of reassessments and realignments that has swept over the area?