US Pivot Research Articles

China and the United States in the Asia-Pacific: Towards a New Model or New Normal of Major Power Relations?

The relationship between China and the United States is one between a rising power and an established power. Whether China is a revisionist power or a status quo power depends on how China and the United States get on with one another in the Asia-Pacific region. The US pivot to Asia and China’s rapid rise has created new dynamics for China–US relations in the region. A changing China–US relationship is also reshaping the strategic landscapes in the Asia-Pacific. US policy towards China has oscillated between containment and engagement since the end of the Cold War. In recent years, this policy has increasingly focused on the “engage but hedge” logic. The Obama administration’s pivot to Asia has rebalanced the focus of the “engage but hedge” policy and put more emphasis on political, economic and security competition with China in the Asia-Pacific region. Despite Xi Jinping’s proposal for a “new model of major power relations” between China and the United States, both countries are actually entering into a “new normal” type of power rivalry in the Asia-Pacific region.

Home Alone? The US Pivot to Asia and Its Implications for the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy

With the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement in 2015 and President Obama’s visits to Asian states in 2014 the long-proclaimed US pivot to the Asia-Pacific has gained momentum. The US move is of strategic significance and poses new challenges to Europe while also opening new opportunities: Though the transatlantic ties will probably remain strong, the Europeans cannot rule out further significant reductions in the US engagement on the ‘old continent’ as a consequence of a possible deterioration of the situation in Asia. Europe will therefore have to make stronger efforts with respect to its own security. A European Union that takes the necessary measures to overcome its foreign policy divisions would become better situated to maintain peace and stability in its area of influence. To achieve this, Europe needs to effect a paradigm shift that renders its Common Foreign and Security Policy more concise and coherent and thus enhances its actorness in International Relations. This might even include the establishment of common European armed forces. Without deeper defence integration European countries might well end up as an assembly of marginalized political dwarfs.

The US Pivot to Asia and New Military Strategy: Impact on Taiwan's New Security Situation

The US Pivot to Asia and New Military Strategy: Impact on Taiwan's New Security Situation

The United States and the Lower Mekong Initiative

The US Lower Mekong Initiative is a mechanism to support the Mekong countries in their struggle against hunger and poverty. The initiative is also a part of the “US Pivot to Southeast Asia” strategy to rebalance the influence and strategic competition among big countries in the subregion, especially between the United States and China.

Offensive for defensive: the belt and road initiative and China's new grand strategy

ABSTRACTChina's Belt and Road initiative came from the combined pressure of slowing down of Chinese economy, US pivot to Asia and deterioration of the relations with neighboring countries after weathering the storm of the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. It also symbolizes a more proactive approach of Chinese new leader Xi Jinping in meeting the expectation on China's international obligation and leadership. Aimed to link Asia, Europe, Africa and Oceania, the initiative provides tremendous opportunities of international economic cooperation. The paper argues that as China's contribution to international public goods, it is in the line of economic liberalism; as China's grand strategy, it is more of defensive than offensive by nature. Despite risks and uncertainties exist, the enforcement will boost China's influence and position in regional and international institutions. US should consider making more strategic space to the rising China, and a better coordinated China–US relations will make Asia Pacific a safer and more promising region.

Between ‘Concern’ and ‘Opportunity’: US Pivot to Asia and Foreign Policy Debate in India

Underlined by China’s growth and the relative decline of the US, a transition of power is taking place in Asia-Pacific. To arrest its declining influence, the US has initiated a pivot to the region. India, being a regional rising power, has received special attention from the US as part of its strategy to manage Asia’s changing balance of power. On pivot, domestic foreign policy debate in India is highly fractured, however. Perceptions of the pivot in India range between viewing it as a ‘strategic concern’, on the one hand, and a ‘strategic opportunity’, on the other. This debate reflects the divide between two major schools in Indian foreign policy: Traditional Nationalists versus the Great Power Realists. Under Manmohan Singh, India foreign policy practice indicated a preference for ‘strategic autonomy’ as suggested by the Traditional Nationalists. However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ascension to power suggests that India is now ready for greater engagement with the US on balancing China’s growing power in Asia, a position espoused by the Great Power Realists.

The United States of excess: gluttony and the dark side of American exceptionalism

Americans take pride in their exceptionalism, not always aware that exceptional excess is part of the package. Compared to other wealthy countries, for example, America stands out as a gluttonous over-consumer: emitting twice as much carbon dioxide per capita as the average for the 27 nations of the European Union, and boasting obesity prevalence numbers that are double the industrial world average. But this is not all; America is also exceptional in the weakness of its national policy efforts to correct the challenges of obesity and climate change. For Paarlberg, these three failures -- in food and fuel consumption and policy response -- can be linked to the country's unusual material and demographic circumstances, singular political institutions, and unique political culture. American society is defined by the ideals of personal freedom and material abundance, conditions that elected leaders must always pledge to enhance, not diminish. Thus, as Paarlberg argues, democratic governments are unable to take effective preventative action against either climate change or obesity. Both crises will continue to worsen, forcing governments to gradually shift from their posturing of taking preventative action toward implicit acceptance and costly adaptation measures. As Paarlberg shows in America's Excess, the US's pivot toward adaptation is important because it will produce dramatically unequal outcomes both at home and abroad. An effort to live with accelerating climate change may be feasible for the United States over a decade or two, when investments in adaptive technologies and infrastructures become affordable, but it will increase the vulnerability of poor countries that are unable to protect themselves. An American decision to live with obesity produces a different kind of inequity. It does little harm to foreign nations, but it will worsen outcomes for the obesity-prone segment of America's population, especially racial minorities and the poor. Under such circumstances, and absent an unforeseen techno-scientific breakthrough in medicine or energy, the new challenge of good government will be to ensure equity between the wealthy and poor when making public investments to treat obesity or to protect vulnerable communities from extreme weather. Available in OSO:

A Comparative Analysis of Shenzhen and Kashgar in Development as Special Economic Zones

Kashgar, a westernmost city in the restive Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region bordering Central and South Asia, was paired with the southern city of Shenzhen, the most successful special economic zone for its future development. The development of Kashgar’s economy in specific and the Xinjiang in general is a part of China’s new Silk Road project which serves multi-purpose goals, such as narrowing regional disparity, reducing ethnic tensions, fighting terrorism and balancing US pivot to Asia. It is skeptical whether the Shenzhen model can be transplanted into Kashgar. The plan of developing Kashgar’s economy and establishing Kashgar special economic zone may be considered a new bottle with old wine. The development programmes in the past several decades did not address the roots of ethnic tension, including suppression of cultural autonomy and unequal distribution of the benefits and social costs of economic growth. Besides that, the success of the Shenzhen special economic zone is an exception, not a rule. It was unsuccessful in the past attempts to transfer the successful experience from Shenzhen to other special economic zones. It is skeptical whether the Shenzhen experience can be transplanted to Kashgar, whose geographical location and investment environment was much inferior.

America's rebalance to the Asia-Pacific: The impact on Canada's strategic thinking and maritime posture

This paper examines the impact of the US pivot to the Asia-Pacific on Canada's strategic thinking and maritime posture. It highlights elements of the US rebalance before examining Canada's recent past, present, and future strategic and military engagement. Canada wants to be able to contribute to crisis de-escalation if regional tensions lead to conflict, yet the Royal Canadian Navy has less deployment capacity today than it has had in 25 years. To contribute to mediatory influence, and provide warfighting capability, a recapitalized navy should increase deployments to the region, forward deploy some naval assets, and ensure interoperability with its US counterpart. In the event of a crisis, a choice might have to be made between a neutral, honest-broker stance and a more likely decision to contribute forces to a US-led coalition. The first step in either case is to be in the Asia-Pacific region with capable and credible naval forces.

Евроатлантические отношения в XXI веке: проблемы и сценарии

The Euro-Atlantic relations after the end of the Cold war have been strongly influenced by the impact of three interrelated crises: the existential crisis of NATO, the world economic and financial crisis, and the crisis in the Russia-West relations. The end of bipolarity has changed the threat environment and revealed how different alliance members formulate their threat perception and foreign policy interests. Europe stopped to be the US foreign policy priority. The US pivot to Asia has raised European concerns about American commitments to collective defense. The removal of the threat of a global conflict resulted in the EU initiatives aimed at promoting integration in the field of common security and defense policy (CSDP). Even though the US has officially welcomed a stronger European pillar in NATO, it has become concerned about new approaches that could divide transatlantic partnership and take resources away from military cooperation. At the same time the unilateralist preferences of the Bush administration generated deep political divisions between the United States and the European Union. The world economic and financial crisis contributed to a dangerous gulf between American and European defense spending. The US has complained about the tendency of the alliance’s European members to skimp on defense spending and take advantage of America’s security shield to free ride. In the absence of a clear external threat NATO tried to draft new missions, which were found in NATO’s expansion to the post-Communist space and Alliance’s out of area operations. But these new missions could not answer the main question about NATO’s post-bipolar identity. Moreover, the Kosovo operation of NATO in 1999 fueled Russia’s concerns about NATO’s intentions in the post-Soviet space. The creeping crisis in the Russia-West relations resulted in the Caucasus and Ukrainian conflicts that provided kind of glue to transatlantic relations but did not return them to the old pattern. There can be several representing possible futures lying ahead. But under any scenario EU will be faced with a necessity to shoulder more of the burden of their own security.

‘Pivot’ and ‘Rebalancing’: Implications for Asia-Pacific Region

The strategic matrix of Asia-Pacific is nowadays revolving around the US pivot and rebalancing policy vis-à-vis China. The landscape is reflecting a complex state of interdependence between the US, China, and their allies. China prima facie is strengthening its economic base before robustly embarking upon modernization of its armed forces to counter-balance the US. The security environment is poised to sustain the status quo in order to avoid the detrimental effects upon their intertwined economic interests. It is argued that states are inclined to maximize their power. Chinese rise is no exception and, the rise of peer-competitor is not expected to be peaceful, testifies the past historical record. This would eventually swing the future contours of world politics toward the second phase of China-centric Cold War. Therefore, in spite of interdependence, traditionally the nation-states would tend to search for enemies thereby pushing them to accordingly recalibrate and redefine their national interests on diverse and fluid geostrategic trajectories.

Contemporary Conflicts in the Asia Pacific Region: Professional Lecture by Walden Bello

The Asia Pacific has entered a period of intense destabilization. This has multiple causes, but in my view, there are three principal causes of instability: (1) the so-called US Pivot to Asia; (2) China’s aggressive territorial claims in the South China Sea West Philippine Sea; and (3) resurgent right-wing nationalism in Japan.

The EU’s Comprehensive Approach to Security in Asia

This article aims at demonstrating through examples that the EU's longstanding engagement in Asia with ASEAN and Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) in addition to bilateral relations progressively and in line with the new understanding of the EU as a comprehensive political actor in international relations extends beyond trade and economics, e.g., security matters. This growing engagement predates the US pivot but seeks to complement US efforts and tries to carve out a niche for EU policies in the rearrangement of power-relations and the emerging institutional architecture of the region. It links up with the special EFAR issue on a European Approach to Comprehensive Security in highlighting the EU's comprehensive approach to security, focusing on experience in non-traditional security threats and drawing on its historic experience of trust and confidence building, conflict prevention and management, all public goods in short supply in the region. If the EU acts coherently it could have a higher degree of credibility in supplying these goods than other players in the region (China, Japan, US) thereby countering through concrete initiatives the narrative that the EU is neither present in nor relevant for Asia.

The Effects of the US Pivot to Asia on European Strategic Cooperation

No abstract available

The Pentagon and the Pivot

Chinese officials and analysts regard the US pivot towards the Asia-Pacific as a strategy to contain China, despite Washington's claim that it does not focus on a particular country. Instead of acc...

China's Foreign Policy: Responding to the US Pivot to Asia and Managing Differences with its Neighbours

China devoted much effort to manage its relations with Asia-Pacific countries in 2012 due to the US pivot to the region. China views the military-centric focus of the US pivot as directed at China and as emboldening regional countries to be more assertive in their territorial claims vis-à-vis China. In 2013, the Chinese leadership will likely strike a balance between seeking a stable external environment and standing firm on issues concerning China's national interests.

Developments in and Obstacles to the US Pivot to Asia: What Alternatives for Europe?

The new US strategic guidance released in January 2012 represents a hallmark of US President Barack Obama’s foreign policy and forms integral part of the so-called “Pivot to Asia.” However, rather than a radical departure from the past, the strategic guidance represents an evolution and extension of US foreign policy towards the region, envisaging the reallocation of American military assets from Europe to the Asia-Pacific. The implementation of the guidance strategy is a long-term and complex process: several challenges, tensions and frictions between the US and regional actors may hamper the implementation of the policy and will require a delicate balancing act in which China will play a key role. On the European side, the US shift should be seen as an opportunity to review the European Security Strategy and elaborate its own strategy towards Asia.