The maritime strategy of China in the Asia-Pacific Region : origins, development and impact

It examines how and why a country like China, which in politico-geographic terms is a continental land-mass and historically has had an inward-looking military orientation, should start adopting an outward-looking maritime one. With this change has gone an expansion of China's coastal defense forces and ultimately an expansion of its blue-water navy and long-distance submarine fleet. The main reason for this change is China's growing reliance on relatively distant energy and primary resource supplies and on markets for its finished products. As its economy grows so does the country's need for imports like oil, coal, iron ore and bauxite and its need for foreign markets for its exports. In the main all of the goods involved travel by sea. China has had to plan how best to protect its sources of supply and the shipping routes its raw materials take as well as how best to protect its access to global buyers. Indeed, it could be said that China now looks more to its ability to control key sea lanes and choke points (like the Straits of Malacca) than to control of its territorial integrity (though Tibet and other regions where minority peoples reside remain problematic in this regard). It certainly seems to have reshaped its strategic thinking so that it now has much more of a maritime focus. The regional response has been mixed. Some are clearly concerned that China's expanding maritime might tokens strategic ambitions that the capacity to project its power at a growing distance will allow it to fulfill. Others are more sanguine since they see China as doing no more than assert its historic role as a regional hegemon and as taking its place as a responsible stakeholder there. Others again see the rise of China in terms of a complex process of international interaction that involves regional powers like India and Indonesia, plus the global superpower, the United States. All are potential counter-weights to China, at least in conventional balance of power terms. At the same time, however, China has shown little sign that it intends to assert itself in a one-sided way. The study itself looks at the origins of China's national maritime strategy and the shift to sea power. It documents the way this shift moved from a land-oriented policy with a coastal defense component to one that had greater off-shore aspirations and ultimately blue water ones. It subsequently examines the affects of China's expanding maritime strategy on maritime security in the Asia-Pacific. This requires not only an assessment of changes to the strategic balance in the region but an assessment of the potential threats to energy security there. It concludes by discussing Chain's growing maritime influence. This study is a timely and comprehensive account of a research topic that is currently in the forefront of Asia-Pacific concerns. It reviews in a systematic fashion all the main issues this topic raises. In so doing it provides a valuable addition to the scholarship on contemporary China and its relation to regional affairs. As noted above the implications of China's growing maritime strength is seen in different ways. Some fear it, often because of their political pessimism. Some do not, in part because they do not see China as an expansionist power. Others see the future as being negotiated as the various regional parties proceed. Dr. Huang's work is a thoughtful contribution to what should be made of this important difference. As such it should find a relatively wide readership. Both scholars and the general public would like to know what to make of China in this regard and this study is certain to help them. Title Page Copyright Page ABSTRACT FOREWORD by Derek McDougall ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Taipei, Taiwan (ROC) ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Context Analysis 1.2 Question Statement 1.3 Research Proposition 1.4 Methodology 1.5 Comparison of Relevant Concepts 1.6 Definition of Terms Chapter 2 Literature Review 2.1 Approaches of Chinese Strategic Studies: Structural Realism vs. Strategic Culture 2.2 Chinese Grand Strategy and Sea Power 2.3 China’s Maritime Strategy and the PLA Navy 2.4 Summary PART I ORIGINS Chapter 3 Weltanschauung, Grand National Strategy, Strategic Culture and Nationalism 3.1 Chinese Weltanschauung: Past and Present 3.2 China’s Grand National Strategy and Its Rising Sea Power 3.3 Chinese Strategic Culture and Military Theory toward the Sea 3.4 The Influence of China’s Nationalism on Its Maritime Strategic Orientation 3.5 Summary PART II DEVELOPMENT Chapter 4 Coastal Defence 4.1 Political Analysis: Land-Oriented Grand Strategy and Coastal Defence 4.2 Economic Analysis: Maoist Economic Development and Self-Sufficiency 4.3 Socio-cultural Analysis: Party/Army Relations and Techno-Nationalism 4.4 Military Analysis: Capabilities and Operations of the PLAN 4.5 Summary: Strategic Appraisal of China’s Coastal Defence Chapter 5 Offshore Defence 5.1 Political Analysis: Emerging Sea-oriented Grand Strategy and Maritime Defence 5.2 Economic Analysis: China’s Ocean Frontier and Its Rising Maritime Economy 5.3 Socio-cultural Analysis: Civil-Military Relations, Pragmatic Nationalism and Ocean Consciousness 5.4 Military Analysis: Offshore Active Defence, Capabilities and Operations of the PLAN 5.5 Summary: Strategic Appraisal of China’s Offshore Active Defence Chapter 6 Aspiration for Far Sea Defence 6.1 Political Analysis: China’s Emerging Strategic Objective of Sea Power Status 6.2 Economic Analysis: The Top Strategic Priority of Economic Security 6.3 Socio-Cultural Analysis: Maritime Soft Power under China’s Charm Offensive 6.4 Military Analysis: ‘Aircraft-Carrier School’ vs. ‘Submarine School’ 6.5 Summary: Appraisal of China’s Blue-Water Maritime Strategic Ambition PART III IMPACT Chapter 7 The Impact of China’s Expanding Maritime Strategy on Maritime Security in the Asia-Pacific 7.1 Determining the Changing Distribution of Regional Strategic Equilibrium 7.2 Potential Threat to Regional Maritime Economic Energy Security 7.3 Accelerating the Emergence of Potential Regional Navalism 7.4 Challenges to Maritime Security Building 7.5 Summary Chapter 8 Conclusion 8.1 Succeeding Zheng He’s Historical Voyages 8.2 Expanding China’s Maritime Leverage APPENDICES Appendix A: The Map of China’s Two-Island Strategy Appendix B: The Location of Paracel and Spratly Islands in the South China Sea Appendix C: The Location of Senkaku/Diaoyutai Islands Appendix D: The Map of China’s Sea Routes Appendix E: China’s Naval Units Appendix F: Countries Claiming Ownership in the South China Sea BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX Foreword / Dekek Mcdougall -- Introduction -- Literature Review -- Part I: Origins -- Weltanschauung, Grand National Strategy, Strategic Culture And Nationalism -- Part Ii: Development -- Coastal Defence -- Aspiration For Far Sea Defence -- Part Iii: Impact == The Impact Of China's Expanding Maritime Strategy On Maritime Security In The Asia-pacific -- Conclusion -- Appendix A: The Map Of China's Two-island Strategy -- Appendix B: The Location Of Paracel And Spratly Islands In The South China Sea -- Appendix C: The Location Of Senkaku/diaoyutai Islands -- Appendix D: The Map Of China's Sea Routes -- Appendix E: China's Naval Units -- Appendix F: Countries Claiming Ownership In The South China Sea. Paul An-hao Huang : With A Foreword By Derek Mcdougall. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.