If China can exert complete control over the region, using predominantly the maritime domain, it can build a significant strategic sphere of influence and power. April 26, 2016 There is widespread interest in the rising tensions over the waters east of China. China sought access to natural resources, to political influence and to a strategic maritime position in the Bay of Bengal. The Strategic Importance of the South China Sea - LinkedIn The Strategic Importance of the South China Sea Nevertheless, for America, this new world will be profoundly discomfiting and even alien. This is the first of three short essays examining the South China Sea as a first order strategic problem for the United States. Australia, for its part, has vocally supported U.S. freedom of navigation exercises in the South China Sea and may have quietly conducted its own in recent months. The 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea is an international treaty that sets out importantmaritime rules. The strategically important South China Sea is an increasingly prominent stage for the spiraling tensions . She also observed that the sea-lanes through the South China Sea constituted a global commons not subject to sovereign claims by any nation. South China Sea: Why is it strategically important? - Clear IAS Ironically, the United States is drawing closer to communist Vietnam, in which human rights are serially abused, while growing apart from a major Vietnam War ally, largely due to concerns over democratic backsliding. From busiest . Chinese missiles on the mainland already hold all U.S. Asian bases at risk. It was the first time that had ever occurred. This order embodies certain foundational political principles respect for international law, preservation of the real sovereign independence of regional states, a refusal to legitimate unilateral territorial expansion, and the unconditional acceptance of the sea-lanes as a global commons. Brunei, ASEAN and the South China Sea | Lowy Institute The United States also faces a challenge in enforcing international law in the South China Sea. As the new administration sets out to revamp U.S. strategy in the South China Sea, it should keep the following guidelines in mind: Although Chinese cooperation is necessary to address some regional and global issuessuch as North Koreas belligerent behavior and climate changethe United States should not be held hostage by concerns that a more robust deterrence strategy will thwart bilateral cooperation. For example, targeted sanctions on Chinese companies involved in destabilizing activities could be considered. It is one in which China dominates the South China Sea from the north; the United States and its partners dominate the eastern and western edges of the sea; and the bulk of continental Southeast Asian states (Thailand, Cambodia and Laos) are either neutral or aligned more closely with China. The outcome of that contest will profoundly influence, if not shape, the 21st century world. Such access would complement the renewed U.S. presence in the Philippines; facilitate a regular American presence in the western part of the South China Sea; enable the United States to more easily defendor seal upthe Malacca Strait; and, it should be noted, put American forces within striking distance of major Chinese bases on Hainan, including port facilities that host Chinas ballistic missile submarines. Security, Strategy, and Military Dynamics in South China Sea: Cross-National Perspectives on JSTOR. The geopolitical and strategic landscape of South China Sea These factors combined give a strategic importance to the South China Sea that has led to numerous states Brunei, the People's Republic of China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam each pressing their own claims to . Chinese warplane intercepts US Navy plane over South China Sea That redundancy will grant the United States flexibility in a couple of ways. A third of the world's shipping passes through it, its fisheries are critical sources of food for millions of people. Last year, the construction projects covered 72 acres. South China Sea Dispute - History, Causes & Consequences for UPSC 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. It is highly likely that China will continue to upset regional stability in the SCS to expand its own sphere of influence. China is working hard to bring under its control the water, islands, rocks and reefs that sit within its imaginary nine-dash line. In a meeting attended by the foreign ministers of 26 nations from the broader region, Clinton simply asserted that the South China Sea was subject to multiple territorial claims and a multinational mechanism should be established to find a peaceful diplomatic solution. The post-war regional order. Expanding U.S. access to Vietnamese facilities as described above could eventually render access to Thai facilities somewhat redundant, further weakening the institutional support for the alliance in the United States. Over the longer term, American defense contractors may have their sights set on sales of fighter aircraft and attack helicopters. There are certainly other situations involving other challenges, but this is the most plausible and dangerous. Why does China care so much about the South China Sea? Here are 5 How that competition will evolve remains to be seen, but the very fact of the contest should be understood as a reversal of fortune for China. While consistency in U.S. messaging and policy execution is important, it should be balanced by carefully calculated unpredictability in operations and tactics to prevent Beijing from becoming overly confident in its ability to anticipate U.S. reactions. India has likewise pursued deeper defense ties with Vietnam, and Indian warships just made port calls at Cam Ranh Bay and Subic Bay while en route to trilateral naval exercises with the United States and Japan in the Western Pacific. China has steadily built capabilities and infrastructure, most notably military facilities on artificial islands, that enable greater control of the South China Sea. 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. In 1974, Chinese gunboats attacked and defeated a small South Vietnamese military outpost in the Paracels an archipelago of reefs, atolls, and islets in the South China Sea. Although ultimately unsuccessful in Vietnam, America emerged in a surprisingly advantageous strategic position in Southeast Asia with alliances intact with Thailand and the Philippines and friendly ties with Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. US and China is engaging in this sea to control all significance. Geopolitical platform, analysis of political, military, security, economic, social events with international and geopolitics relevance. 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. STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF SOUTH CHINA SEA - academia.edu Should those ties continue to expand, moreover, the United States may find that it has greater flexibility in dealing with a vexing regional ally: Thailand. When China moved a massive oilrig, theHaiyang Shiyou 981, into Vietnams exclusive economic zone in 2014, Vietnam had limited options to respond, at either the low end or the high. China and Philippines agree to 'manage differences' on South China Sea Seventh Fleet transits regularly between the Pacific and Indian Oceans (including the Bay of Bengal). That grouping came under Chinese control an event that went almost entirely unnoticed in the wider world as the drama marking the end of the Vietnam War played out. In April, Australian Defence Force personnel joined the U.S.-Philippines Balikatan maneuvers, which included an amphibious landing exercise. China's Art of Strategic Incrementalism in the South China Sea The most likely single scenario for a major military engagement against a great power adversary would be one against China centered on the South China Sea. More than half of the world's fishing vessels are in the South China Sea, and millions of people depend on these waters for their food and livelihoods. In 1995, the Philippines discovered that China had occupied and militarized an atoll (Mischief Reef) well within the Philippines EEZ and within maritime territory claimed by Manila. 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 . The South China Sea has become important to the US because of China's challenge to the liberal rules-based order that America has promoted since the Pacific war. Select Accept to consent or Reject to decline non-essential cookies for this use. In such a complex environment, it is important to have well-established, recognizable rules of international law. Read more, One Woodrow Wilson Plaza1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NWWashington, DC 20004-3027, 2023 The Wilson Center. South China Sea, Dispute, Map, Countries, Strategic Importance Southeast Asia will inevitably be rendered subordinate and compliant to Chinas will. Beijings moves have prompted Washington to counter Chinese assertiveness by forging a new strategic alignment in the regionone in which China dominates the South China Sea from the north, the United States and its partners do so from the east and west, and the states of continental Southeast Asia remain neutral or lean toward Beijing in the intensifying U.S.-China strategic competition. The United States has been less successful in supporting local partners as they resist Chinese coercion. Stay Connected! Geo-Strategic Importance of the South China Sea Geo-Strategic Significance And Importance Of South China Sea For China The main route to and from Pacific and Indian ocean ports is through the Strait of Malacca and the South China Sea. It is the geostrategic importance that is usually the main reason for the parties to strengthen their claim over the Spratlys and the Paracels. 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. 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. 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. 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 USSJohn C. Stennistied up there for a few days in April. From a strategic perspective, the geographical significance of the SCS is that whoever has dominance over it, dominates the future of East Asia. That line was given little credence or attention in the U.S. or in Asia over the first five decades of the PRCs history. Recent satellite analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies shows that Chinese fishing fleets are engaged in paramilitary work on behalf of the state rather than the commercial enterprise of fishing, the organization reported. The South China Sea is one such essential waterway, made more important by the value of the sea's fisheries and subsea resources such as natural gas. The South China Sea, or South East Asian Sea, is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean.It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luzon, Mindoro and Palawan), and in the south by Borneo, eastern Sumatra and the Bangka Belitung Islands . 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. More and more, we see a particularly aggressive maritime stance from China towards NATO warships when exercising freedom of navigation through the SCS. Vietnam's coastline bordering the South China Sea is over 3,000 kilometers long. China perceives Vietnam as an obstacle for acquiring its control over this strategic sea. Firstly, the South China Sea is a prominent shipping passage with $5.3 trillion worth of . The message will be clear; the era of American international leadership and predominance is over and a new preeminent power has taken its place. Miguel . Currently, President Xi Jinping makes frequent references to Chinas possession of the South China Sea since ancient times an assertion that lacks any validity historically or legally. U.S. leaders should not be afraid of tension in the U.S.-China relationship. At the economic front, it is estimated that an annual global trade of $5.3 trillion passes through the SCS. The refusal, likely prompted by Beijing, might seem to be just another way for China to put pressure on Taiwan, which it has long regarded as a renegade province. Countries across the region prioritized economic growth and modernization. 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. In October 2020, Hong Kong's air traffic control denied a Taiwanese flight access to Pratas Island, a Taiwan-occupied feature in the South China Sea. Unfortunately, the allies now lack a shared strategic outlook, thus reducing the impetus to overcome recent bilateral political hurdles. Since 2009, China has growingly asserted its influence over the SCS by enforcing an annual fishing ban, conducting regular maritime patrols, undertaking scientific surveys and conducting military exercises in the disputed islands and waters. In 2016, they carried fully one-third of global shipping with an estimated value of $3.4 trillion. 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. 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. It would also open the option of persistently jamming Chinese radar installations in the Spratlys. Close allies such as Australia and Japan have a great deal to offer in terms of capability and capacity, and should be encouraged to do more. The Malacca Strait, the South China Sea and the Sino-American From the report. Navy P-8s are now regularly deploying to Singapore and, although without regular access, they have conducted patrols from Malaysia as well. The South China Sea is one of the most important economic and environmental regions in the world. The Asia Program promotes policy debate and intellectual discussions on U.S. interests in the Asia-Pacific as well as political, economic, security, and social issues relating to the worlds most populous and economically dynamic region. 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. The two major power of the world i.e. . The Growing Importance of Vietnam to India's South China Sea Policy Therefore, the US plays a key role in influencing the resolution of the SCS disputes. through South China Sea Port is 1400 kms long. If full democratization is her goal, there is no foreign partner more important than Washington for achieving it. In practice, Thailand may be neutral in the regions great power fissures into the next decade. Importance of the South China Sea for the US and China and their 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. 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. Cross-Strait relations: The strategic importance of Taiwan Nevertheless, Beijing had taken its first overt step to control the South China Sea. It remains entirely plausible that any Chinese strategy could have a long term goal of possessing the power to deny US or western warships access to the SCS, with China largely laying claim to most of the area as it's own waters. 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. America has formal defense/security alliances with five Asian countries: Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, and Australia. Meanwhile, Japan is providing ten new multi-role vessels to the Philippine Coast Guard; Manila is also interested in procuring used P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft from Tokyo. 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). U.S. responses to Chinas South China Sea activities have been insufficient to alter Chinas behavior and have fed the narrative that China is pushing the United States out of the region. As maritime security such as safety and freedom of . These actions suggest that China might undermine freedom of navigation and overflight, principles of fundamental importance to the United States. The United States has been largely successful at preserving its own freedom of action and deterring outright Chinese aggression in the South China Sea through routine presence operations. The strategic value of the alliance remains high, according to theCongressional Research Service: *** U.S.