China in a multipolar world

Abstract

This chapter explores China’s naval reaction to the international context in which the country finds itself and demonstrates that China’s naval rise in fact has become a major element in today’s increasingly multipolar world order. It shows that naval development can be both a consequence of systemic change and a cause of it. The chapter also explores the practical extent of China’s naval rise, and asks whether it will justify the expense and effort required—a question at the heart of many debates in China today. China will face a number of geographical and other constraints as it emerges as a naval power and challenges U.S. naval pre-eminence. While undoubtedly a potential contributor to the two countries’ falling into the so-called “Thucydides Trap,” the chapter concludes that with wisdom and constraint on both sides this can be avoided.