A bipartisan effort is emerging to highlight dangerous trends in Asia—and specifically in the South China Sea. But will Obama listen?
The balance of power in Asia is changing—and not
in Washington’s favor.
No longer can the United States count on simply
massing forces Gulf War I style and quickly coming to the aid of its allies if
combat ever commenced on the Korean peninsula, in the East China Sea, around
Taiwan or in the South China Sea—all
thanks to China’s massive military buildup and growing
anti-access/area-denial capabilities. The Obama Administration is quick to
point out America is “pivoting” or “rebalancing” to Asia—maybe one of the most
“sticky” foreign policy slogans in the last twenty five years. But catchphrases
can’t change the facts and many would argue the pivot remains only a slogan
when we take a hard look at facts on the ground. China is not only altering the
status quo on land but
on the water, in
the sky, in
space, and maybe
even in cyberspace too.
