By Joshua Kurlantzick, CFR: “The trip was designed in part to highlight the administration’s commitment to freedom of navigation in the Pacific, and particularly in the South China Sea.”
Thomas Donnelly | Strategika
What to Do About Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran?
By Alex Gallo, Modern War Institute: “The United States should continue to build out our intelligence picture, regional missile defense, and our capabilities to hunt and destroy such conventional systems in these regions. But we should also contemplate new forms of deterrence against “below-threshold” approaches of such regional actors.”
China’s emphasis on upgrading its navy represents a worrying trend for the U.S. and its regional allies, as it threatens their territorial integrity and may ultimately enable China to challenge U.S. naval supremacy in the region.
- China's enhanced ability to project maritime power in East Asia at the expense of U.S. strategic interests and the territorial integrity of U.S. regional allies. Through its naval might, China has laid claim to various disputed outposts in the North, East, and South China Seas, and threatens the freedom of navigation in these contested waterways.
- The U.S. government has worked to craft a strategy in response, which involves enhancing its own naval capabilities, augmenting regional force posture, reaffirming commitments to allies, and ensuring the freedom of navigation in East Asia.