China’s Rise, America First, and a Networked Indo-Pacific Order

Abstract

The spread of the Indo-Pacific concept reflects that the international and regional order is undergoing a new round of adjustment. The Asia-Pacific concept, which emerged in the late 1980s, is not only the product of the unipolar hegemony of the United States intended to dominate East Asia and the continuous competition between the United States and Japan for the dominance of regional order, but also the result of the continuous rise of East Asian economies to promote regional cooperation. In the second decade of the 21st century, the wide application of the Indo-Pacific concept is a discussion on whether a new regional order centered on China will be formed in the region, which reflects the unease of neighboring countries over China’s rise and the increased competitiveness and antagonism of the U.S. policy towards China. At present, the discussion on the Indo-Pacific regional order is still in the initial stage, and one of the main reasons is that the theoretical foundation of the concept is still unclear, including the geopolitical color of traditional great power competition, and the new views on the development of regional globalization. The second reason is that there is no convergence of great powers’ Indo-Pacific policies. Trump’s advocacy of this concept is the product of domestic political compromise. “America first” means Trump will pay less attention to the international obligations the United States has promised. But for other countries, China’s rise is generally conducive to regional stability, and it remains to be seen whether the Indo-Pacific order is conducive to their national interests. The third reason is that today’s economic relations are widely based on the production chain, and the globalization promoted by the United States is undergoing a deep restructuring due to the relations of the industrial chain. The transformation of an American supporting globalization into an American political polarization leading to de-globalization will have a significant impact on the regional order.