Andrew S. Erickson

I can’t recommend this great event highly enough—it is an essential experience for anyone who wants to understand critical Chinese military-technological dynamics and trends. It singlehandedly validates the wisdom of establishing the Minerva Program. Be sure to register now while there’s still space available!
2014 Summer Training Workshop on the Relationship Between 
National Security and Technology […]

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“U.S. ‘Could Change Military Posture’ If China Sets up Second ADIZ,” Japan Times, 1 February 2014.
… “We oppose China’s establishment of an ADIZ in other areas, including the South China Sea” where China is involved in territorial rows with Southeast Asian countries, Evan Medeiros, senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council, said […]

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Daniel R. Russel, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, “Maritime Disputes in East Asia,” Testimony Before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, Washington, DC, 5 February 2014.
Noteworthy excerpts:

“we firmly oppose the use of intimidation, coercion or force to assert a territorial claim.”
East China Sea: “important to lower […]

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Jeffrey A. Bader, “The U.S. and China’s Nine-Dash Line: Ending the Ambiguity,” The Brookings Institution, 6 February 2014.
For the first time, the United States government has come out publicly with an explicit statement that the so-called “nine-dash line,” which the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan assert delineates their claims in the South China […]

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Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Statement for the Record
Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community
Provided to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL TEXT REPORT
Download DNI Clapper’s Remarks
From pp. 21-22 of the report:
EAST ASIA
China
Chinese leaders will try to focus primarily on domestic priorities during 2014 while leveraging China’s […]

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Bradley Perrett, Bill Sweetman, and Michael Fabey, “U.S. Navy Sees Chinese HGV as Part of Wider Threat,” Aviation Week & Space Technology, 27 January 2014.
In the view of the U.S. Navy, the Mach 10 test of a hypersonic glide vehicle that China conducted on Jan. 9 reflects its predictions of future warfare. If and when […]

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Thanks to Taylor Fravel for calling this important news to my attention!
Zhu Ningzhu, ed., “Xi Jinping to Lead National Security Commission,” Xinhua, 24 January 2014.
BEIJING, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) — President Xi Jinping will head China’s new national security commission, the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee decided on Friday.
The political bureau decided to […]

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The full text of Admiral Locklear’s recent speech is well worth reading. Thanks to CDR John Bradford, USN for bringing this to my attention.
Admiral Samuel J. Locklear III, Commander U.S. Pacific Command, Speech at the Surface Navy Association Conference, 15 January 2014.
It’s great to be back at SNA. I’ve had a long time affiliation with […]

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Andrew Tilghman, “PACOM Chief: Uncontested U.S. Control of Pacific is Ending,” Navy Times, 15 January 2014.
The four-star commander of U.S. Pacific Command says the era when the U.S. military enjoys uncontested control over the Pacific’s blue water and its airspace is coming to an end.
Adm. Sam Locklear told a Navy conference in Virginia that the […]

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Zhou Wa, “China Seeks to Calm US fears over Missile,” China Daily, 16 January 2014.
The Ministry of National Defense issued a statement on Wednesday dismissing media reports that China’s recent ultrahigh-speed missile test flight was aimed at delivering warheads through the missile defenses of the United States.
“It is normal for China to conduct scientific experiments […]

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Ely Ratner, “(Re)Defining the ‘New Type of Major Country Relationship’ between the United States and China,” Center for Strategic and International Studies PacNet 4, 13 January 2014.
The US response to China’s call for a “new type of major country relationship” remains one of the most controversial and misunderstood components of the Obama administration’s China policy. […]

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Fact Sheets: The East Asia-Pacific Rebalance: Expanding U.S. Engagement
By Newsroom America Feeds at 16 Dec 2013
The East Asia-Pacific Rebalance: Expanding U.S. Engagement
Fact Sheet
Bureau of Public Affairs
December 16, 2013
“As a Pacific nation that takes our Pacific partnership seriously, the United States will continue to build on our active and enduring presence.”  – Secretary of State John Kerry
Recognizing that […]

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Andrew S. Erickson and Austin M. Strange, “Why China’s Gulf Piracy Fight Matters,” Global Public Square, CNN, 7 January 2014.
Editor’s note: Andrew S. Erickson is an associate professor in the Strategic Research Department at the U.S. Naval War College. Austin M. Strange is a research associate at the China Maritime Studies Institute. The views expressed are the authors’ alone.
December 26, […]

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Yang Yi, “New Joint Command System ‘On Way’,” Xinhua, 3 January 2014.
BEIJING, Jan. 3 (Xinhuanet) —  The Chinese military is to establish a joint operational command system “in due course”, with observers saying this will result in more-coordinated and combat-capable forces to efficiently respond to a crisis.
Setting up the system is a basic requirement in […]

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Andrew S. Erickson and Austin M. Strange, “No Substitute for Experience,” Guest Blog Post for Elizabeth C. Economy, Asia Unbound, Council on Foreign Relations, 2 January 2014.
This guest post is by Andrew Erickson, an associate professor in the Strategic Research Department at the U.S. Naval War College, and Austin Strange, a researcher for the College’s China Maritime […]

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This is what top-level leadership support for national space development looks like!
Hou Qiang, “Chinese President, Premier Arrive in Aerospace Control Center,” Xinhua, 15 December 2013.
BEIJING, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) — Chinese president Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang arrived in Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC) on Sunday night.
The moon lander and moon rover “Yutu”, or Jade Rabbit, will take pictures […]

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Jon Harper, “Chinese Warship Nearly Collided With USS Cowpens,” Stars and Stripes, 13 December 2013.
WASHINGTON – On Dec. 5, a Chinese warship nearly collided with a U.S. Navy guided missile cruiser, according to U.S. Pacific Fleet.
“While lawfully operating in international waters in the South China Sea, USS Cowpens (CG 63) and a PLA Navy vessel had […]

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Michael D. Swaine, Rachel Esplin Odell, Luo Yuan, and Liu Xiangdong, U.S.-China Security Perceptions Survey: Findings and Implications (Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 12 December 2013).
Click here for a full-text PDF of the report.
Public and elite attitudes in the United States and especially China are exerting a growing influence on the bilateral security relationship. […]

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Click here to read the report.
“China Focus: China’s Lunar Probe Soft-Lands on Moon,” Xinhua, 14 December 2013.
BEIJING, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) — China’s lunar probe Chang’e-3, with the country’s first moon rover onboard, successfully landed on the moon on Saturday night, marking the first time that China has sent a spacecraft to soft land on the […]

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