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Showing posts with the label The great Asian Power game

5 Common Myths about China's Power ( Source- The National Interest / Authors- Bonnie S. Glaser, Matthew P. Funaiole)

Image credits- VOA Source- The National Interest Authors-  Bonnie S. Glaser , Matthew P. Funaiole China’s transformation from an isolated, developing country into an economic juggernaut and emerging global actor is perhaps the most important power shift for twenty-first-century international politics. Its economy is now second largest in the world, while its military budget has ballooned from $20 billion in 1989 to $215 billion in 2015—an amount larger than the military budgets of Russia, Germany and the United Kingdom combined. Fear surrounding the consequences of China’s rise has engendered the spread of misinformation and hyperbole, much of which dominates public discussion of China in the United States. Several persistent “myths” about China overshadow its many problems, including its deeply ingrained corruption, slowing economic growth and aging population. These myths create an image of China as a dangerous usurper destined to displace the United States as t

Book Review: Indian Power Projection: Ambition, Arms and Influence ( Source- The Diplomat / Author- Ankit Panda)

Indian Army Para SF  ( Source- Wikimedia Commons)  Source- The Diplomat Author- Ankit Panda Does India project hard power? If it does, what tools does it use? Finally, what are its ambitions for power projection in the future, as it continues to rise and emerge as a world power? These questions are at the center of a new monograph by Shashank Joshi, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. Indian Power Projection: Ambition, Arms and Influence presents, as of 2016, what is perhaps the most up-to-date compendium of information on India’s hard power toolkit and Indian policymaker attitudes toward that toolkit. Generally, owing to a range of domestic political factors and its security situation vis-a-vis its neighbors, India has been largely uninterested in far-reaching power projection since its independence. Indeed, today as during much of the Cold War, the country’s primary warfighting scenarios are against its neighbor to the west, Pakistan, an

China’s Rise to Great Power Status in Asia: Worth Going to War to Protect? ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Malcolm Davis)

Shenyang J-31 ( Source- Wikimedia Commons / WC) Source- The National Interest Author- Malcolm Davis Paul Dibb recently wrote on The Strategist/The National Interest that China has long-term systemic problems which will prevent its continued rise to Asian great power status, and that as a “brittle state,” China can’t afford to go to war as the risk of failure is too great. But he ignores China’s strategic culture, its history and national identity, all of which strongly influence its policy choices in Indo–Pacific Asia today and into the future, including any decision to go to war, and which also drive its military modernization process. He then rather unconvincingly characterizes China as an isolated power absent friends. President Xi Jinping promotes the idea of the ‘China Dream’, which is about restoring China’s traditional, and from its perspective, rightful position as the leading or dominant power in Asia. From a domestic perspective, this demands that China cont

Asia’s New Geopolitics Takes Shape Around India, Japan, and Australia ( Source- The Diplomat / Author- Harsh V. Pant)

Malabar series of exercises ( Image credits- Indian Navy) Source- The Diplomat Author- Harsh V. Pant New configurations in Asian geopolitics are emerging thick and fast. Last month saw the initiative of a new trilateral involving India, Japan, and Australia when Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar met his Australian counterpart and the Japanese vice foreign minister. Japan will also be a part of bilateral India-U.S. annual naval exercises–the Malabar–slated to be held over the next few months. Though Japan has participated in these exercises in the past as well, this will be only the second time when Japan will join these exercises in the geostrategically critical Indian Ocean region. There is a growing convergence in the region now that the strategic framework of the Indo-Pacific remains the best way forward to manage the rapidly shifting contours of Asia. Proposed first by Japan and adopted with enthusiasm by Australia under the Tony Abbott government, in particu

Asia's Lethal Naval Arms Race (Source- The National Interest / Author- Sheryn Lee)

USS Leyte Gulf on petrol ( Source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- Author) Source- The National Interest Author- Sheryn Lee Claims that a destabilizing ‘arms race’ is underway in the Asia–Pacific have become commonplace and are supported by reports that regional defense spending has surpassed Europe for the third consecutive year. As my ASPI report released today shows, the corollary of this situation is intensifying naval competition in the region. The implications for Australia and the Australian Defense Force (ADF) are significant. Decisions on arms acquisitions in the Asia–Pacific continue to be driven by a multitude of strategic rationales and domestic factors. The significant changes underway since 2008 raise questions regarding the primary motivation behind regional naval acquisitions, including their supporting air capabilities. Maritime disputes between China and its neighbors have increased tensions and affected countries’ military modernization programs. T

Chinese media: 'US unreliable in Asia' ( Copy Right @ The PhilStar)

Malabar Series of Exercises ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons/ United States Navy) After Chinese President Xi Jinping championed the new Asian security concept, Chinese media loyal to the ruling Communist Party exerted to explain the vision believed to offset the dominance of the United States. State-run Global Times' recent editorial notes how Asian nations including China's rival  ‪#‎ maritime‬  claimants Philippines,  ‪#‎ Japan‬  and  ‪#‎ Vietnam‬ cannot look to the United States to guarantee security in the rapidly growing region. 'The new security vision for Asia proposed by Xi means that we cannot count on countries beyond  ‪#‎ Asia‬  to guarantee Asian  ‪#‎ security‬ ," says the piece's author, Wang Yiwei, director of international affairs at Renmin University of China. "Asian security issues need to be resolved in an Asian way. The Western world is used to forging alliances and fermenting conflicts and confrontations to gain profits, which

A New Security Alliance for Asia-Pacific ( Copy Right @ Asia Sentinal)

Image courtesy- Wikipedia commons The creation of a multinational defense organization, not unlike NATO, might be one solution to preserve stability and security in Asia-Pacific. On April 4, 1949, the  North Atlantic Treaty Organization  was born, formed in part to deter Soviet expansionism and to establish a North American presence in Europe, in addition to integrating Europe and preventing the rise of militant nationalism. Although one can certainly debate the relevance of NATO in the world today, elsewhere however, such an alliance might prove necessary. The players and setting might differ, but the challenges remain the same. A source of concern with China’s ascension and increasing assertiveness has more than worried, if not aggravated, a few of its neighbors. Beijing’s unilateral establishment of an ADIZ (Air Defense and Identification Zone) in the East China Sea, which encompassed the much disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands with Japan, is only the latest kerfuffle,

THE GREAT ASIAN POWER GAME- A BRIEF ANALYSIS

As we enter the second half of the new century,  a new power game that will not only define the future of Asia-Pacific but the entire world is quietly been played out. The predominant players in this great game are Japan, China, India, The United States of America and Russia. A brief analysis of all the powers: JAPAN Japan has historically been one of the most powerful countries in Asia. After the devastating defeat in the second world war, it took Japan just 3 years to become a global power house. But with the strict curbs on military development, Japan followed a pacifist policy. But America nurtured Japan allowing her to develop a credible defense apparatus under the name of Self Defense. Japan now is slowly coming out of it's self imposed exile and building up it's defenses. With it's massive economy, Japan will be one of the main players of the emerging Asian security architecture. CHINA China has predominantly been an Asian super power. With the re