2011 Articles

Gone Rogue? China‘s Assertiveness in the South China Sea

Pham, Derek

Despite China‘s efforts in the past decade to implement a "good neighbor" policy with surrounding states, in the past two years this foreign policy has been seemingly compromised by China‘s aggressive tactics in the contested South China Sea (SCS), including its imposition of unilateral fishing bans, arrests of foreign fishermen, and increased coastal patrols. China‘s supposed private declaration this past March to American officials that the South China Sea constituted a "core interest" appeared to affirm a newfound and unconventionally aggressive commitment to the question of sovereignty in the SCS. This pattern of assertiveness was further apparent in China‘s vehement response to U.S. intervention in the dispute. Media reports attempting to interpret the change in posture concluded that there was still much uncertainty associated with China‘s ascendancy in the international system.