Managing The Pacific

The Indo-Pacific ranges from East Africa, across the Indian Ocean, to the western and central Pacific, including Japan and Australia. Within this vast area, cooperation between countries and systems of alliances form, such as cooperation between the U.S., Japan and Australia, countering trends such as China’s assertive behavior in the South China Sea and its […]

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Xi Advocates Efforts To Boost China’s Maritime Power

President Xi Jinping has championed efforts to build China into a maritime power, adding that the country will pursue “converging interests” with other countries in oceanic development. At a study session with members of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee on Tuesday, Xi called for efforts to learn more about […]

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China And Its Military Transparency

When China published her defense white paper “the Diversified Employment of China’s Armed Forces” in April 2013, the western critics lauded the efforts but pointed out that China didn’t put much meat on the bone and that the paper is again short on details that people would like to see. Read Here – China US […]

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India’s Splash In The Oceans

India’s drive to develop maritime forces that can protect its coast and project power into its surrounding waters is one of the biggest defense stories of recent years, but one that doesn’t grab the headlines like its ongoing fast jet acquisitions. But the numbers don’t lie: in 1988 the navy’s annual spend was INR10 billion ($181 […]

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Will the U.S. Navy Surrender Maritime Asia?

The Chinese navy’s surface forces are on the march. Destroyers, frigates, corvettes, fast-attack craft, and, most recently, the newly commissioned aircraft carrier comprise the surface fleet. Over the past two decades, the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLA Navy) has put to sea four Sovremenny-class guided-missile destroyers procured from Russia, along with ten new classes of indigenously […]

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The Struggling Middle Powers

In an increasingly contested Asia, with China rising and America rebalancing, middle powers are struggling to redefine their defense strategies.  One such player, Australia, has now done so in a way that seeks to reconcile its extensive national interests with a close U.S. alliance, a web of new Asian security partners and a relationship of mutual […]

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China And The US-Japan Military Alliance

The emergence of the People’s Republic of China as an increasingly significant military power in the Western Pacific presents major implications for Japan, the U.S.-Japan alliance, and regional security. But a comprehensive assessment of the current and possible future impact of China’s military capabilities and foreign security policies on Tokyo and the alliance, along with […]

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Australia Defense Paper Accepts Rise Of China’s Military

Australia struck a conciliatory tone toward top trading partner China as it said that Beijing‘s rising defense capabilities are a natural outcome of its growing economy, according to a new strategy outlined in Australia’s Defence White Paper 2013, released on Friday. “The government does not approach China as an adversary. Rather, its policy is aimed at encouraging China’s peaceful rise and ensuring that strategic competition in the region does not lead to conflict,” the defense strategy said. Read Here – China Daily Read The Defense Paper Here

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A New Road Map for U.S.-Chinese Relations

The Obama administration’s “pivot” to Asia made sense, because China was starting to doubt U.S. staying power. Now that Washington has sent Beijing a clear message it will be around for the long haul, however, the time has come for the two countries to deepen and institutionalize their relationship in order to secure Asia’s lasting […]

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