In the first paragraph of his recent AMTI article, Zheng Zhihua essentially conflates two issues–questions of sovereignty over islands and questions of jurisdiction over resources and the boundaries delimiting them–when he says: A few international observers also accuse China of deliberately obscuring its territorial claims in the South China Sea by using terms not found […]
Within the short span of a year, China’s rapid construction of artificial islands in the disputed Spratlys has radically changed the geographical and security landscapes in the South China Sea. This island construction has so far created over eight million square metres of real estate in the open sea, outstripping other countries’ reclamation activities by […]
There are lots of criticisms that China’s claims in the South China Sea are ambiguous. For example, it has been criticized for “failing to honor” the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea despite being a signatory to it, as well as for “violating” other international laws on the sea. China has never […]
President Benigo Aquino III’s first state visit to Japan reflected the increasing tempo of security cooperation between these two U.S. allies that are facing a common security challenge in their maritime domains—China’s maritime expansion. President Aquino met Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to discuss how they can strengthen their countries’ strategic partnership in the face of […]
By various accounts, policy is firming up in Australia on what to do about the South China Sea – specifically, whether Canberra should take an unambiguous stand on the destabilising impact of China’s island-building activities. Australian policymakers are not fooled by the surface calm with which discussions concluded at the recent Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. […]
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter’s remarks at the Shangri-La Dialogue on May 30 amounted to a robust, but measured, defense of the United States’ rebalance to the Asia Pacific and its commitment to remain a Pacific power. The speech covered a broad spectrum of U.S. commitments to the region—economic, political, and security—before concluding with an enthusiastic […]
Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani proposed a “Shangri-La Dialogue Initiative” (SDI) at this year’s Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. To build foundation for deeper security collaboration with regional partners, Nakatani proposed crisis management though the promotion of common rules and law in the maritime and air domains, maritime and air security through the enhancement of regional […]
Secretary of Defense Ash Carter’s address at this weekend’s Shangri-La Dialogue was generally well received by conference attendees and Asia-security watchers. A few critics have argued that Carter was “just talk.” What none have noted, however, is the fact that the Secretary’s remarks were the latest installation in a series of moves by the administration […]
China is far from a monolithic power. Its rapid ascent has transformed it into both a centripetal force of integration as well as a centrifugal force of fragmentation. Earlier this year, China managed to pull off a major strategic coup against the United States (U.S.) by astutely convincing almost all relevant economies in Asia and […]
Shangri La Dialogue 2015 Explore key maritime security developments from the 2015 Dialogue. Ashton Carter, Secretary of Defense, United States Secretary of Defense Ash Carter’s Saturday morning address was well-received by the Shangri-La audience. Carter’s speech included a strong stand against China’s building efforts in the South China Sea, and reaffirmed the United […]
“China’s Military Strategy,” released on May 26, 2015, is the 9th Chinese defense white paper since 1998. For the first time, the white paper elaborates comprehensively on the missions and strategic tasks of China’s armed forces in the new political environment and emphasizes the essence of the strategic concept of active defense. There are four […]
On Saturday morning at the Shangri-La defense dialogue in Singapore, U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter delivered a long-anticipated speech on security issues in Asia. As tensions have mounted over China’s island building in the South China Sea, Carter has been one of the administration’s strongest voices, calling the militarization of the islands a challenge […]
Since China first sent a senior military officer to participate in the Shangri-la Dialogue (SLD) in 2007, it has come to the annual security meeting prepared with a carefully crafted strategy to deflect criticism and advance Chinese interests. This year was no exception. On the eve of the SLD, Beijing released its Defense White Paper, […]
As delegates assemble for the 14th annual Asia Security Summit, better known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, regional tensions are running high over China’s island building in the South China Sea. As the weekend summit gets under way, here are the issues to watch. Stormy Seas and Skies: In the last several months, the region and […]
China has opted not to send its Defense Minister to the 2015 Shangri-La Dialogue, as in past years. Instead, Beijing’s representative will be Admiral Sun Jianguo. Who is he and what should we expect from his attendance? Read on to find out! Who is he? Admiral Sun Jianguo of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy […]
Highlights from Shangri-la Dialogue 2014. Video credit: IISS. The 2015 Shangri-La Dialogue kicks off on Friday, May 29, in Singapore and runs through the weekend. The defense summit will feature a keynote speech by Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsein Loong and plenary remarks by U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, Japanese Minister of Defense Gen […]
Taiwan, along with China and four Southeast Asian countries, is a claimant in the South China Sea, though this fact is sometimes overlooked, despite it occupying the largest natural land feature in the South China Sea (Taiping Island or Itu Aba). On paper, Taiwan and China appear to be making substantially the same claims. The […]
Satellite imagery of the South China Sea has established that over the previous twelve months, China has expanded its presence there by up to 1500 acres. The Chinese have been actively reclaiming land at the following reefs: Cuarteron, Fiery Cross, Gaven, Hughes, Subi, and the Union reefs (Johnson South and Johnson North reefs). One perspective […]
The U.S. Navy has released video of a P-8A flight over China’s artificial islands in the South China Sea. Some of this video has been released via a CNN exclusive, but it also includes additional, stunning footage of aerial patrols in the Spratlys. In these video clips, sailors assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 45 conduct […]
On Wednesday May 13 the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission held hearings on China’s Relations with Southeast Asia. The first panel (40:27 – 2:22:01 above) reviewed the security dimensions of China’s relations with Southeast Asia. Testimony was issued by AMTI director Mira Rapp-Hooper, CSIS Senior Adviser for Asia Bonnie Glaser, the Center for a New American Security’s Patrick Cronin, and Chin-Hao […]
On Wednesday, May 13, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel and Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs David Shear testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on American interests in and strategy for the East and South China Seas. Team AMTI has identified some choice […]
In its Memorial and supplemental information submitted to the arbitral tribunal in The Republic of the Philippines v. The People’s Republic of China, the Philippines argues that all features in the Spratly archipelago are incapable of sustaining human habitation or economic life of their own. Even the largest feature in the Spratlys – Taiping Island […]
China’s expansive and accelerated construction activities in the South China Sea have elicited growing criticism from across the region and beyond. While some countries, particularly Vietnam and the Philippines, are primarily worried over the impact of China’s reclamation activities on their maritime claims in the area, other countries, from Singapore to Japan and the United […]
China’s reclamation activities in the South China Sea remain a matter of grave concern for reasons that are not solely political. The radical transformation of major coral atolls in the region’s marine ecosystem affects far more than the already huge area physically occupied by China’s new islands. The biophysical impacts extend well beyond their artificial […]
Center for Strategic and International Studies Conference Call on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Visit to Washington Participants: Michael J. Green, Senior Vice President for Asia and Japan Chair, CSIS Matthew P. Goodman, William E. Simon Chair in Political Economy and Senior Adviser for Asian Economics, CSIS Nicholas Szechenyi, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Japan […]
It has been nearly 15 years since the alliance last revised the Guidelines for U.S.-Japan Defense Cooperation. Both governments revised these Guidelines as a part of the security relationship’s transition to the post-Cold War environment, while abiding by the constraints of Japan defense policies at that time. Speaking of the 1997 Defense Guidelines, Japan’s Ambassador […]
The new U.S.-Japan Defense Guidelines will upgrade bilateral operational cooperation and enhance the alliance structure. The new Guidelines enable Japanese and U.S. forces to conduct effective combined operations defending each other’s units and assets in the high seas—even beyond Japanese territorial waters. The new Alliance Coordination Mechanism will endorse this upgraded operational cooperation. Under this […]
On Monday, the U.S. and Japanese government announced the conclusion of their upgrade of their alliance.[1] The U.S.-Japan Defense Cooperation Guidelines have been revised for the second time since they were drafted in 1978, first in 1997 to respond to the early disruptions after the end of the Cold War, and today to cope with […]