64 SOCIAL SCIENTIST the scope of American interests", which means that the United States can intervene in any part of the world whenever the U S administration thinks that its "interests" are threatened. The world is being driven to the brink of disaster with the adventurist military policies of the United States. The U S Army Cheif of Staff, Gen John A Wickham, has reported that 43 per cent of the U S army was deployed overseas, 14 out of 30 AWAGS surveillance planes were abroad, and 5 out of 12 aircraft carriers were in foreign waters.13 The last few years have witnessed a phenomenal increase in military spending by the U S. When President Carter was elected in 1976, defence spending was authorised at 95.7 billion dollars; at the end of President Reagan's term of office in 1984, the spending on defence went upto 300 billion dollars. Along with increased military spending, the United States has set up an intricate pattern of military alliances. In the Asia-Pacific region, these alliances involving the ANZUS Pact, the ASEAN and the new military cooperation between Japan and South Korea have converted the whole region into a huge military camp; this has increased the vulnerability of the region as well as to a holocaust. Even very small islands of the Pacific feel the dangers of militarisation. The Founh Free and Independent Pacific Conference held in Vila, Vanuatu, in mid-1983, with most of its dele-gaies drawn from the Pacific islands, condemned the deployment of the U S Tomahawk missiles in the region, and the "increased war preparations by the United States, Australia, Japan; New Zealand, and Canada".14 G V C NAIDU 1 In copper, aluminium and oil, the U S control was about 40 per cent of world output. 2 Out of about 7 billion dollars worth of foreign assets in 1970, the American share was believed to be between 60 and 70 per cent. 3 Ghitoshi Yanaga, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1968, p 254. 4 AMPO, Tokyo, Vol 15, No 2, 1983, p 5. 5 New York Times, March, 27&28, 1982. 6 Ibid, July 24, 1982. 7 Ibid, October 1, 1982. 8 ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) comprises of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Brunei. The oil rich Brunei got independence only in the beginning of 1984 from Britain. 9 AMPO, op cit, pp 9-JO. 10 U S News and World Report, (Washington), August 20. 1984, pp 45-47. 11 Donald Crone, "Emerging Trends in the Control of Foreign Investments in ASEAN", Asian Survey, (Berkeley). April 1984. p 417. 12 Incidentally the Asian Development Bank is not so Asian in its composition. Established in 1966 to channelise tlie funds to Asian countries, the United States and Japan alone control about 30 per cent of sliares; and the shares held by the non-regional states, the U S, Western Europe and Australia, are about 40 per cent. 13 International Herald Tribune, August 11, 1983 and September 21. 1983.