Can China Defend A "Core Interest" In The South China Sea?

Abstract

Deja vu surrounds reports that Beijing has claimed a "core interest" in the South China Sea. High-ranking Chinese officials reportedly asserted such an interest during a private March 2010 meeting with two visiting U.S. dignitaries Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg and the senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council, Jeffrey Bader. Subsequently, in an interview with The Australian, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton disclosed that Chinese delegates reaffirmed Beijing's claim at the Second U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue, a gathering held in Beijing in May 2010. Conflicting accounts have since emerged about the precise context and what was actually said at these meetings. Since then, furthermore, Chinese officials have refrained from describing the South China Sea in such formal, stark terms in a public setting.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2011
Accession Number
ADA539933

Entities

People

  • James R. Holmes
  • Toshi Yoshihara

Organizations

  • Center for Strategic and International Studies

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Ballistic Missiles
  • Combat Operations
  • Geography
  • Humanitarian Assistance
  • National Security
  • Naval Operations
  • Naval Warfare
  • Navies (Foreign)
  • Navy
  • New York
  • Oceans
  • Sea Control
  • Security
  • South China Sea
  • United States
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • Asian Economic Studies
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.