Book review: Dilip Hiro, Cold War in the Islamic World: Saudi Arabia, Iran and the Struggle for Supremacy
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/23477970221098505 |
| Published date | 01 August 2022 |
| Date | 01 August 2022 |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
Book Reviews 355
three regional organisations’ efforts in guaranteeing food security. When the book
explains the food insecurity in Hong Kong, it did not talk about the local treatments
of household food waste, that is, turning household food waste into an organic
source of animal feeds.
Finally, in the cases of China and India, it ignores the significance of food
waste in both countries. In this book, an exception is to mention that ‘Singapore
is losing about 1 billion USD a year due to food waste. Although food waste is
responsible for 10% of the total waste generated in Singapore, only about 17% of
the food waste is recycled’ (p. 166). It raises several questions. What are the main
drivers and barriers to reducing avoidable food waste in Singapore? Is it possible
for high productivity to address food waste in Singapore? How many countries in
the Asia-Pacific region have food waste management systems in place? The
answers to the above-mentioned questions would have enriched the arguments
and conclusion in this book.
Climate Change and Food Security in Asia Pacific answers some urgent
questions about the climate change and food insecurity issues in the Asia-Pacific
region while raising more questions for the further study on this topic. This book
will greatly interest scholars and students of human security as well as casual
readers. Islam and Kieu have provided a strong contribution to the emerging field
of study on food security in the Asia-Pacific region and climate change, as well as
to the understanding of a sustainable food system.
ORCID iD
Kai Chen https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0891-3408
Kai Chen
Xiamen University, China
E-mail: kaichen@xmu.edu.cn
Dilip Hiro, Cold War in the Islamic World: Saudi Arabia, Iran and the
Struggle for Supremacy. Hurst, 2020, pp. 432. (Paperback). ISBN:
9781787384088.
DOI: 10.1177/23477970221098505
Bernard Baruch, an influential presidential advisor from Woodrow Wilson to
Harry S. Truman, invented the term ‘Cold War’ in 1947 to characterise the
deterioration of relations between the United States and the Soviet Union in the
wake of Second World War. Since then, the term has caught on, and it is now being
used to describe the deteriorating relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Dilip
Hiro’s latest Cold War in the Islamic World: Saudi Arabia, Iran and the Struggle
for Supremacy is a welcome addition to the vast literature on the rivalry between
Iran and Saudi Arabia. What sets it apart from the other similar works is that it not
only dissects the complex history and rivalry in its proper historical context but
also traces their origins objectively. Although he is not a trained historian, Hiro
To continue reading
Request your trial