China's Military Posture and the New Economic Geopolitics
Journal Article, Survival, volume 41, issue 2, pages 71-88
Summer 1999
Author: Evan A. Feigenbaum, Former Executive Director, Asia-Pacific Security Initiative, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs & Former Program Chair, Chinese Security Studies Program; Former Research Fellow, International Security Program/Managing the Atom, 1998-2000
Belfer Center Programs or Projects: Science, Technology, and Public Policy
ABSTRACT
China's increasing energy needs have underscored four questions concerning Beijing's military posture and strategic intentions. How will China guarantee its most vital sources of energy supply, especially those that depend on the free flow of goods through international shipping routes? Does China possess the naval capability to secure sea-lines of communication? Is such a capability at the center of its future naval planning? Can China's missile capabilities be used to intimidate international shipping? The link between China's historic use of force and resource considerations is tenuous. The particular case of the South China Sea has been inflated by many analysts into a more significant case study of Chinese strategic behavior than it actually merits. Chinese strategic interests in resource supply are not incompatible with US hegemony. Indeed, an American draw-down in the Pacific is a greater threat to the stability of Asia's energy markets than any potential Chinese challenge to the status quo.
For more information about this publication please contact the STPP Program Coordinator at 617-496-1981.
For Academic Citation:
| MOST VIEWED PUBLICATIONS | POLICY BRIEF: AUTO EMISSIONS |
|---|---|
Policy Options for Reducing Oil Consumption and Greenhouse-Gas Emissions from the U.S. Transportation Sector The goal of this paper is to contribute to the current policy debate about how to effectively limit or reduce oil consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. transportation sector. |
