Rich Country Interests and Third World Development

First published in 1982, Rich Country Interests and Third World Development adds breadth and specificity to the exploration of the interests in Third World development of eleven “rich” countries—the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and France.

The authors analyze a spectrum of Northern economic, political, and security interests in development in the South. They also examine how national experiences, political traditions, humanistic values, and changing attitudes have influenced perceptions of and relationships with Third World countries over three decades of dramatic change in the North-South environment.

This book helps lay a foundation for negotiated solutions to North-South issues by offering a greater appreciation of differences as well as commonalities in interests both among and within industrial and developing countries. An overview chapter points to issues broader than those raised in the country studies and addresses a critical question: On what terms is it in the interests of the North and South to pursue and fashion interdependence between them in the 1980s?