KEITH ROBBINS was formerly Professor of History at Bangor and Glasgow universities in the UK, and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Wales. He has held the posts of President of the Historical Association, and Editor of History. He is the author of over 20 books, 8 edited books, and 120 scholarly articles on political, military, religious and international history, and is the general editor of six major historical series.

• ChronologyMapsIntroduction: Grasping Global HistoryPART I: ENDING WAR, BUILDING PEACEStruggles for MasteryPolicemen MeetingOutcomes and AnticipationsPART II 1945-1955: MAKING A COLD PEACEEuropean AlternativesThe United Nations and the United StatesThe Middle EastSouth AsiaEast AsiaPART III: 1955-1965: TO THE BRINK AND BACKSuperpowers and Subordinates: The Middle East and EuropeContinental Confrontations: Castro, Kennedy, KhruschevAfrica: Emergences and EmergenciesAlgeria: Found and LostAsian AccommodationsPART IV: 1965-1975: OLD PATTERNS AND NEW PERMUTATIONSAsian VariationsSuperpowers ChallengedSecurity and Cooperation in EuropeOverlapping Linkages: A Mediterranean WorldAfrica's WorldsPART V: COMING TO CONCLUSIONS 1975-1989Europeans: Identifying a Common Home?The Middle East: Putting its World to Rights?A Question of Latitude: 'North' and 'South'Afghanistan to Sri Lanka: South Asia?East Asia/Pacific: Flexing Muscles?Gorbachev and Reagan: Turning Point 1985-89PART VI: 1991-2011: NEW WORLD ORDERS?Superpowers: Rethinking RequiredThe Middle East: Still at the CentreIdentifying Multipolar Complexity.