strategic importance of south china sea strategic importance of south china sea

India and Vietnam, while acknowledging the strategic importance of the SCS and their volatile position when it comes to China's rising power, are edging closer toward each other. The China - Solomon Islands security agreement and the competition in the South China Sea. Coral reefs, which are vital to marine habitats, have been declining by 16 percent per decade, according to a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The growing size and capability of the Chinese air force, navy, and coast guard allow Beijing to consistently monitor and exercise de facto control over most of the South China Sea. Importance of South China Sea The South China Sea is a busy international waterway, one of the main arteries of global trade worth more than $5 trillion and is growing year on year. With a new Southeast Asian strategic alignment taking shape as described, geography makes Indonesia and Malaysiaespecially due to its Sabah and Sarawak states on Borneothe regions key swing states. You can update your choices at any time in your settings. This button displays the currently selected search type. 2023 Center for Strategic & International Studies. Thanks to the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), American power projection capabilities will be regularly present in the Philippines for the first time since the early 1990s. South China Sea is also strategically important due to the rising competition between China, Vietnam, Philippine and the US for military supremacy in the Asia-Pacific region. In a first, a Modi-Obamajoint statementlast year explicitly raised concerns over the South China Sea and called on all parties to avoid the threat or use of force and pursue resolution of territorial and maritime disputes through all peaceful means.. US still mired in a 'Cold War' mindset, but the tide's turning, The West is misreading Chinas Party Congress at the peril of world stability, Can Foreign Investors still have Good Reasons to be Optimistic about China? Due to the strategic importance of the area, China will continue to establish a maritime power in the SCS as the most dominant player among states in the region. But the South China Sea has been dangerously overfished. The United States and the West more broadly can live with such an outcome. In short, adopting a more robust deterrence approach need not prevent cooperation that is in the interests of both countries. Unfortunately, some countries fail to comply with the existing international law. Chinas island outposts will increase this advantage as Chinese aircraft, ships, and paramilitary vessels will be able to rest and resupply in the southern portion of the South China Sea. . US and China is engaging in this sea to control all significance. China has seized the initiative in the South China Sea, however, and the United States needs to revamp its strategy to reverse current trends and escape the trap of reactive and ineffectual policymaking. The geopolitical message was unmistakable: Western expectations that China was transitioning toward political democracy were entirely illusory. China perceives Vietnam as an obstacle for acquiring its control over this strategic sea. In order to understand the contention of the South China Sea and its significance, it is firstly imperative to understand the geopolitical importance of Asia, which has given rise to Chinese pre-eminence; enabling its rise to contemporary major political power on the global stage. However, there were a number of reasons to conclude that the line was no cartographic anomaly; it was an official indication of Beijings contention that the sovereign territory of China included the South China Sea. 1) Islands are much more strategically valuable. The Tribunal rejects Chinas maritime claims that go beyond the entitlements set out in the Law of the Sea Convention. Tokyo and Manila agreed to a strategic partnership in 2011. TheSouth China Seais one of the most important economic and environmental regions in the world. The Chinese recently built an island in the South China Sea, apparently as a potential airbase. by M A Hossain 3 March 2023 The geostrategic significance of Bangladesh derives from its strategic location at the crossroads of South and Southeast Asia, endowing it with a pivotal role in the re Final Thoughts & Looking Towards the Future. The United States will continue to stand with our allies and partners to uphold the order that we helped build, Pencesaid. The United States has leverage over China in areas not directly related to South China Sea and may have to consider using or threatening to use these tools to stabilize the regional order. Those bases may be vulnerable, but before and at the outbreak of hostilities, they will allow China to project power deep into maritime Southeast Asia, to threaten commercial and military passage through the sea, and to impose and enforce an air defense identification zone. China is working hard to bring under its control the water, islands, rocks and reefs that sit within its imaginary nine-dash line. NEW DELHI (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan urged China and the US to de-escalate tensions in the Taiwan Strait and the South . This concept of regional order links tightly to a broader set of interests, values, and institutions embodied in the post-World War II international system a system that reflects U.S. values, U.S. leadership and is consonant with U.S. interests. In addition to far flung island territories (formerly occupied by Japan) in the South Pacific, the United States had a substantial military garrison in Japan and close ties with South Korea and the Philippines a former colony. A new arrangement for U.S. naval access to Cam Ranh Bay may well be in the offing. Report China, too, considers control of these waters to be of high strategic importance. Importantly, the countries of maritime Southeast Asia are not aligning only with the United States, but with a grouping of external states concerned with the nature of Chinas rise. The strategically important South China Sea is an increasingly prominent stage for the spiraling tensions . Other claimant states welcome U.S. involvement precisely because Washington does not favor one claimants territorial ambitions over those of the others. The United States needs to consider a wider variety of non-military responses to Chinas efforts to control the South China Sea, and more effectively build a local coalition to support these responses. In the contemporary era, Taiwan remains geographically at the intersection of most of East Asia's danger points. When Beijing froze banana imports from the Philippines in the midst of the Scarborough Shoal standoff in 2012, it sent a clear message to its Southeast Asian neighbors: economic ties would not be immune from diplomatic contretemps. The South China Sea is considered a "near sea" and its geographic proximity to the mainland is central to the China's strategic imagination and threat perception. Japan and South Korea will face a perilous new reality with China in control of the seaborne lifeline of both countries. India is training crews for Vietnams new Kilo-class submarines and will sell Vietnam BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles. The United States also faces a challenge in enforcing international law in the South China Sea. U.S. military advantage is of limited utility in this area and Washington has struggled to convince local partners to join in freedom of navigation operations. We will defend freedom of the seas and skies.. It has increased its military budget by over 8.5% in recent years and this is likely to continue for the near future. In 2012, then Chinese president Hu Jintao voiced his desire to make China a powerful maritime nation. In addition to fishing grounds, the South China Sea contains an abundance of energy resources, . This alignment will further U.S. goals: to continue to mount a forward defense, to keep the seas and skies free, and to promote prosperity and the spread of democracy. In addition to conventional concerns about territorial defense, the South China Sea is also important for China because of its nationalist claims to all of the tiny land . Michael Green, Senior Vice President for Asia and Japan Chair; Dr. Zack Cooper, Fellow, Japan Chair; Bonnie Glaser, Senior Adviser for Asia and Director, China Power Project; Andrew Shearer, Senior Adviser on Asia-Pacific Security; and Greg Poling, Director Asia Maritime Transparency Initiativeto provide the analytical context and some fundamental principles that should guide strategic thinking on South China Sea policy. All this will occur in a region that is increasingly the vibrant center of the world economy. The Thai people are lurching towards a new political arrangement, a process that Thais have to see through for themselves. Therefore, the SCS has geopolitical and geostrategic importance for the energy and economic security of China and East Asian countries; but also for the USA as $1.2 trillion of its trade moves through the waters. There were, however, cautionary signs for those prepared to see them. Cobra Gold, hosted by Thailand and led by the United States, is the largest annual multilateral military exercise in Asia. The United States can stand firm on its principles and deter China from undermining the regional order while maintaining a productive relationship. It is highly likely that China will continue to upset regional stability in the SCS to expand its own sphere of influence. The 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea is an international treaty that sets out importantmaritime rules. The strategic landscape of the Western Pacific and Southeast Asia in the early 1990s was remarkably benign with optimism in full flower. Sign up to receive The Evening, a daily brief on the news, events, and people shaping the world of international affairs. or join us on Facebook. Southeast Asians do not want to and should not have to choose between the two, but Chinese behavior is moving some states to pick sidesor at least to lean in one direction or another. The strategic value of the alliance remains high, according to theCongressional Research Service: *** U.S. The Korean War produced formal defense treaties with each of these countries plus a new, permanent military presence in South Korea. The global focus of economic power has traditionally been centred over the west with the UK and the USA as the key contributors; however in recent years, this has shifted east (see Figure 1), with the main reason for this being rapid urbanization in developing countries, in particular China. This principled stand allows the United States to defend its interests without embroiling itself in the murky sovereignty claims at the heart of the South China Sea dispute. America has formal defense/security alliances with five Asian countries: Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, and Australia. It is growing more difficult to discuss Southeast Asia without discussing Japan, India and Australia, whose ties to the region and to each other are maturing and whose militarieswhether represented by personnel, aircraft, or warshipsare increasingly present in the region. She also observed that the sea-lanes through the South China Sea constituted a global commons not subject to sovereign claims by any nation. Washingtons relationship with Hanoi will make that more palatable. In the near term, this could lead to sales of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance equipment as well as patrol boats to allow Hanoi to better keep an eye on goings-on in the western South China Sea. The strategic importance of the SCS is mainly due to its geographical location, as the area is one of the worlds busiest and most strategic shipping lanes. The United States and its Pacific allies should consider whether it is feasible and sensible to coordinate the activities of USAID, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and Australias Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The "Implementing the Strategic Action Programme for the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand" (SCS SAP Project) completed its Inception Phase with the 1st Steering Committee Meeting held online on the 29 and 30 of June, 2021 with official representatives from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam and the UNEP Task Manager for the project, with the support of . Pressing Challenges to U.S. Army Acquisition: A Conversation with Hon. Guidelines for a South China Sea Strategy. In particular, Thailand has a much more benign outlook on Chinas rise and on its activities in the South China Sea, and although suggestions that Bangkok would dump Washington for Beijing are certainly overstated, Thai elites are hesitant to be drawn into what they see as a U.S. effort to contain the kingdoms largest trade partner. It was the first time that had ever occurred. The two countries elevated bilateral ties to an extensive strategic partnership in 2013 and Japan is in the midst of donating to Vietnam six patrol vessels (for use by the coast guard and fisheries ministry). Not only Vietnam is the strongest opponent of the Chinese nine-dash line claim in the region, Vietnam's sustained economic growth has pushed it to emerge as an important player in the South East Asia, which China perceives is not in its interests. Chinas military modernization has included structural reforms establishing a Joint Operations Command and five new theatre commands (Northern, Eastern, Southern, Western and Central). The largest and most powerful of these . WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the disputed South China Sea has a strategic significance for the international community and any "unlawful" restriction on the freedom of the seas will destabilise peace in the Asia-Pacific region. The conflict and tension over competing sovereignty claims in the South China Sea has grown considerably in the past 5-10 years. In recent years, Chinas inventive engineering feats have allowed it to create more than 3,200 acres of new land in the South China Sea. The area marked with a blue line is based on the UNCLOS 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) relating to each countrys claims and the islands marked in green are the ones over which sovereignty is disputed. the South China Sea that would be " - S " ["permitting a leaf to obscure one's view of the mountain"]. Abstract. The United States can, if necessary, accept a continental Southeast Asia that leans China without major concern for Americas primary interests. The South China Sea (SCS) has great strategic and economic significance in the contemporary international politico-security environment. China's plan for populating the South China Sea was launched in 2012 when "Sansha City", the administrative centre for all Chinese-claimed features in the South China Sea on Woody Island in the . South China Sea has geo-strategic, geo-politic and geo-economic importance due to half of the world trade passage and presence of precious resources of oil and gas. Center for Strategic and International Studies Australia and Vietnam established a Comprehensive Partnership in 2009 and agreed to expand it in 2015. The United States has formally objected to Chinas South China Sea maritime claims. The United States, moreover, should work with its other Pacific alliesAustralia, South Korea and especially Japanto consider ways that they can lead efforts to expand infrastructure investment in Southeast Asia, perhaps by reforming and enlarging the Asian Development Bank or by launching a joint infrastructure investment fund. But as it does so, it acts as midwife to a very real strategic realignment in Southeast Asia, one which promises to benefit the United States and its partners. Read more, One Woodrow Wilson Plaza1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NWWashington, DC 20004-3027, 2023 The Wilson Center. Stay Connected! Persistent American military presence at the eastern, southern and western points of the compassespecially when combined with regional states advancing ISR capabilities, for which the United States is providing investmentwould enable the United States to respond rapidly to incidents in disputed island chains or to Chinese attacks on U.S. and allied naval and air assets or on commercial shipping. Learn more in our Cookie Policy. The sea-lanes that pass through the South China Sea are the busiest, most important, maritime waterways in the world. More than 50% of world trade passes. The risk to Chinese power projection lies predominantly with US interests. The United States should intensify capacity building efforts with allies and partners to improve their ability to resist Chinese coercion. The USA have a direct connection to the area through various allies, connections and trade, and this will naturally continue. Any temptation to alter U.S. policies in the South China Sea to preserve cooperation with China in other areas is unnecessary and potentially counterproductive. The same cannot be said for China and a maritime Southeast Asia that aligns with the United States. From busiest . Check out the linked article on the Belt and road initiative now. This geo strategic significance is the main reason behind the fact that China and other territorial stakeholders are contesting to gain control of these maritime lane. Indeed, when push came to shove, China would force its bilateral partners to choose between economic prosperity on the one hand and security and even sovereignty on the other. Nevertheless, for America, this new world will be profoundly discomfiting and even alien. The Obama administration has made modest gains in this regard, but it will be up for to the next president to seize that opportunity and ensure that Southeast Asias future is prosperous, peaceful and free. But the new maps contours truly began to crystallize earlier this year, when the Philippines Supreme Court ruled as constitutional a new defense agreement with the United States. In addition, it has proved oil and gas reserves, so the sovereignty of the disputed islands involves legal rights to exploit its resources. Yet, due to Turkey's strategic importance, the US cannot afford to affront Mr. Erdogan, who carries a peculiar . American littoral combat ships are rotating through Singapore, at the South China Seas western extremis, and the city-state has also quietly built the only Asian port outside of Yokohama at which an American aircraft carrier can dock. The area includes several hundred small islands, rocks, and reefs, with the majority located in the Paracel and Spratly Island chains. These straws-in-the-wind gained strategic context because the PRC had long published official maps showing a boundary encompassing almost the entire South China Sea the nine-dash line.. U.S. allies and partners in the region are drawing lessons from Chinese coercive behavior and the limited U.S. response to it, and some are beginning to doubt U.S. resolve and adjust their foreign policies in response. By contrast, China views. Few in Washington were inclined to see the South China Sea as a strategic priority engaging vital U.S. national interests. In the past two weeks, Filipino . To this end, the new administration should perform an early, top-down, and thorough strategic review to enable greater consistency and effectiveness in U.S. South China Sea policy. When it comes to trade, investment and infrastructure development, China should not be the only game in town. It is little surprise, then, that Southeast Asian states are drawing closer to the United Statesboth seeking aid in developing their own defense capabilities and hoping that stronger ties act as a deterrent to Chinese assertiveness. Follow the Asia Program on Twitter @AsiaProgram. Three years ago an arbitration tribunal issued a decision finding that Chinas maritime claims in the South China Sea are inconsistent with the Law of the Sea Convention. Beijing may not find it quite as easy to run roughshod over Hanoi in the coming years. Less sexy but no less important is a forthcoming arrangement by which Vietnam will allow the United States military to preposition supplies and equipment in Da Nang on the central coast. In 2012, Vietnam and the Philippines sought to consolidate their partnership and alliance with the US in order to enhance their strategic position over SCS disputes. However, Brunei's insistence that specific issues in the maritime region should be . All Rights Reserved, Japans Emerging Role as the Worlds Consensus Builder, Balancing Acts in U.S. Southeast Asia Policy, Pakistans Foreign Policy Priorities: A Conversation with Foreign Minister by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Indias Economic Ambitions in the Pharmaceutical Industry, Paving the Path to Soft Power: Crucial Moments in South Koreas Cultural Policies, Afghanistan: The United States Must Stay Engaged. Enduring U.S. interestsfreedom of navigation and overflight, support for the rules-based international order, and the peaceful resolution of disputesare at risk in the region. Because of its location, this sea is extremely strategic because it connects the Indian and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Malacca). The area is globally important for a few reasons. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. The South China Sea is one of the most important trade pathways in the world. - Interview with Mei Gechlik, Pelosi's visit to Taiwan Spiking Tensions Between the U.S. and China: an interview with Andrew K.P. The Art of War helps expose the motivation behind past, current, and future Chinese actions. Thailand has little reason to jettison the alliance, but in the near term the United States may need to accept more distant ties and a closer Thai-Chinese relationship. Firstly, the South China Sea is a prominent shipping passage with $5.3 trillion worth of . South China Sea is a strategic sea lane is significance for connectivity, navigation, trade and resources is a global hotspot as a potential flashpoint. China is undertaking a persistent, long-term effort to establish control over the South China Sea. The United States should continue to prioritize military presence in the Asia-Pacific at the same time as it invests in key capabilities, such as long-range precision strike, undersea warfare, cyber/space systems, and other capabilities that will preserve the U.S. ability to deter Chinese aggression. Diplomatic, informational, legal, and economic responses are currently underrepresented in U.S. China policy, and their incorporation into the policy toolkit will be important for successfully dissuading China over the long-term. The Strategic Importance of the South China Sea (With reference to the geopolitical, economic, and military aspects) South China Sea is known as one of the most significant and dangerous cluster of Islands in the contemporary world. In 2016, they carried fully one-third of global shipping with an estimated value of $3.4 trillion. - Interview with Ana Krstinovska, Russia's Growing Influence in the Middle East: an interview with Alexander Hoffmann, Serbia's Uneasy Balance Between Moscow and the EU: an interview with Suzana Grubjesic, Gulf States' Economic Momentum: an interview with Omar Al-Ubaydli, Prospects for Turkey-EU Relations Amid Tensions, Need to Cooperate and Lack of Trust: an interview with Nilgn Arsan Eralp, Germany's Shifting Stance in the Greek-Turkish Dispute: an interview with Ioannis P. Sotiropoulos, Bulgaria's Economic Perspectives amid Political Uncertainty and Challenges, Saudi Arabia's Reforms, Relations with the United States, and Choice of New Allies: an interview with David H. Rundell, Putin's Visit to Tehran: Results and Prospects, The Afghan Taliban Regime Amid Conflicting International Interests, The Resurgent Terrorist Threat in Pakistan: an interview with Tariq Parvez, The Complicated Upswing in U.S.-Pakistan Relations: an interview with Husain Haqqani, Pakistan-CARs ties: The Geo-Economic Vision, Neo-Petrodollar Romance: Implications and Options for Pakistan, India's Strategic Autonomy - Interview with Ambassador Rtn. Post-Mao China, with the emergence of Deng Xiaoping as paramount leader, became a major constructive presence dedicated to economic development fueled by opening the Middle Kingdom to the region and the world. What evidence is there of increased projection of Maritime Power? U.S. policy in the South China Sea has been overly reliant on military options, which may not always be the most effective response. U.S. interests in the South China Sea fall into three broad categories including: (1) Economic interests tied to the sea-lanes; (2) Defense ties with allies and other security partners; and (3) Implications for the global balance of power and influence. Southeast Asia will inevitably be rendered subordinate and compliant to Chinas will. There were, however, cautionary signs for those prepared to see them. That line was given little credence or attention in the U.S. or in Asia over the first five decades of the PRCs history. Networking Social Entrepreneurship in Southeast Asia: Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) program, The High Price of Neglecting Taiwan in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy, Environmental Change and Security Program, North Korea International Documentation Project, Nuclear Proliferation International History Project, Kissinger Institute on China and the United States, The Middle East and North Africa Workforce Development Initiative, Science and Technology Innovation Program, Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition. Vietnam and the Philippines have also attempted to form a strategic alliance with Japan in their struggle with China in the SCS. In December, another joint China-Russia naval exercise was held in the East China Sea (China Military Online, December 21, 2022). This new strategic map of Southeast Asia actually began to take shape during the Bush administration, whichinitially launchedthe effort to move beyond Americas traditional hub-and-spokes alliance model in the Asia-Pacific. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection. That included nearly 40 percent of Chinas total trade and 90 percent of petroleum imports by China, Japan, and South Korea and nearly 6 percent of total U.S. trade.