CMSI Hosts Conference on China’s Future Plans
Tyler Will, Naval War College Public Affairs Office, “CMSI Hosts Conference on China’s Future Plans,” 13 May 2011.
NEWPORT, R.I. – The China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) at the U.S. Naval War College (NWC) hosted a conference to discuss “China’s Strategy for the Near Seas” May 10-11.
Featuring a half dozen panels with speakers from government, academia and the private sector, conference attendees learned about China’s strategies and debated various U.S. strategic options in the region.
“Tensions have been rising over the last few years in the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and also the South China Sea,” said Professor Lyle Goldstein, who turned over leadership of CMSI to Professor Peter Dutton at the conclusion of the conference. “The CMSI conference was intended to explore both new and enduring strategic dynamics with a focus on maritime issues in these crucial sub-regions of East Asia.”
Panels examined the information, surface, sub-surface, air dimensions of possible future conflict in these regions. The last panel facilitated a debate about possible policy responses to various strategic developments.
“China’s increasing ability to challenge the U.S. Navy’s freedom of action in and around the waters of East Asia is one of the major national security issues of our time,” said Dutton. “It has implications for our alliances, partnerships and friends in the region and it has implications for the way in which the stability and security for the global system are maintained.”
“This conference focused on enhancing our understanding of some of the specific aspects of China’s evolving military force structure. But perhaps more importantly, the conference continued the important work that the China Maritime Studies Institute has been doing to consider the strategic consequences of these developments. Our objective is to provide the very best, well-informed advice about these issues to the Navy’s leadership and to our country’s national security decision makers.”
Based at NWC in Newport, R.I., CMSI was established in 2006 and supports the Navy’s research needs and increases knowledge and understanding of the dimensions of China’s maritime rise.
Researchers examine many vectors including energy, environment, commerce, and naval development, among others. Conferences are a key function of the institute.
