Andrew S. Erickson

PRC state media recycles perennial justifications for the world’s second largest defense budget by any measure—long the most rapidly rising of any major power. Professor Adam P. Liff at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School of Global & International Studies and I should update our now-decade-old China Quarterly article on this subject, but so many basic dynamics […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “2013 PRC-Ukraine Treaty of Friendship & Cooperation/Joint Communiqué: Russian, Ukrainian & Chinese Documents, Context, Timeline,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 29 August 2022. 
(Please note: The original post of 21 August 2022 has been updated to include full Chinese– and Ukrainian-language texts of the 2013 PRC-Ukraine Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation.)
Since the beginning of […]

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Once a versatile China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) team member with us at the U.S. Naval War College, subsequently the co-founder (with me) of our China SignPost™ 洞察中国 analytical website, and a valued research colleague ever since, Gabe Collins is one of the only professionals I know of who generates analysis of the highest caliber from […]

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Li Weichao, “China Launches Third Aircraft Carrier,” Xinhua, 17 June 2022.

Photo taken on June 17, 2022 shows the launching ceremony of China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, in east China’s Shanghai. The carrier, named after Fujian Province, was completely designed and built by the country. (Xinhua/Li Gang) 
SHANGHAI, June 17 (Xinhua) — China launched its third […]

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U.S. Naval War College Professor William Murray’s scholarship on the military development and capacities of China and Taiwan is path-breaking, sobering, and thought-provoking. While others have worked hard to address these important issues, Prof. Murray’s scholarship is exemplary in its ability to distill complex and often misunderstood military operational issues to their essential dynamics based […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “Tracking China’s ‘Little Blue Men’—A Comprehensive Maritime Militia Compendium,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 25 May 2022.

Amid wave after wave of Coronavirus variants, fishy things have been happening across the South and East China Seas, home to virtually all of China’s unresolved maritime disputes. Since Beijing remains far from being fully forthcoming and transparent, I hope […]

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China to raise military budget by 7.1% this year
By Zhao Lei | China Daily | Updated: 2022-03-06 14:10

China plans to raise its annual defense budget by 7.1 percent to 1.45 trillion yuan ($230 billion) for the 2022 fiscal year, its seventh-straight year of single-digit growth, according to a draft budget plan unveiled on Saturday.
The figures were […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “Tracking China’s ‘Little Blue Men’—A Comprehensive Maritime Militia Compendium,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 28 January 2022.

Amid wave after wave of Coronavirus variants, fishy things have been happening across the South and East China Seas, home to virtually all of China’s unresolved maritime disputes. Since Beijing remains far from being fully forthcoming and transparent, I hope […]

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Paul Nantulya’s incisive work curates and analyzes revealing information on an array of important and timely but hitherto under-researched topics, following PRC activities across the continent that will contribute the vast majority of new people to the world during this century!
Andrew S. Erickson, “The Paul Nantulya Bookshelf: Elucidating China-Africa Relations with Unique Insights,” China Analysis […]

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Now that the Department of Defense (DoD) has just released the 2021 China Military Power Report (CMPR)… you can access the Full Text & accompanying documents below. Since I couldn’t find a single-source location on the Internet, and the Pentagon has deactivated some of the previous links, I decided to make my own. Now you can […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “Tracking China’s ‘Little Blue Men’—A Comprehensive Maritime Militia Compendium,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 30 October 2021.

As Coronavirus rages on, fishy things have been happening across the South and East China Seas, home to virtually all of China’s unresolved maritime disputes… Since Beijing remains far from being fully forthcoming and transparent, it is to be hoped […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “Tracking China’s ‘Little Blue Men’—A Comprehensive Maritime Militia Compendium,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 15 August 2021.

As Coronavirus rages on, fishy things have been happening across the South and East China Seas, home to virtually all of China’s unresolved maritime disputes… Since Beijing remains far from being fully forthcoming and transparent, it is to be hoped […]

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Conor M. Kennedy is a research associate at the U.S. Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI). At CMSI, his research focuses on Chinese military development and maritime strategy. He has also furnished dozens of annotated translations to support the work of analysts and decision-makers. Kennedy received his B.A. in Political Science and Chinese language […]

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The gonzo world of defense journalism has long attracted some colorful characters. Gatherings at military expos offer transnational tales replete with riveting revelations… and stories of sometimes-shocking risk acceptance. Within this fascinating community, there have been few professionals with the self-discipline, purposeful dedication, and career longevity of Wendell Minnick. And I certainly do not know […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “The Andrew Rhodes Bookshelf: Charting the Indo-Pacific with Maps, History & Geostrategy,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 2 July 2021.
Andrew J. Rhodes is a career civil servant who has served as an expert in Asia-Pacific affairs in a variety of analytic, advisory, and staff positions across the Department of Defense and the […]

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For analysis of Chinese maritime strategy and policy, force development and deployment, and other pressing issues across the waterfront, it simply doesn’t get any better than this treasure trove. Since May 2016 I have periodically compiled and curated my Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) colleague Prof. Ryan Martinson’s superb publications. Now you can enjoy this […]

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Dr. Joel Wuthnow is a senior research fellow in the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs within the Institute for National for Strategic Studies at the U.S. National Defense University (NDU).

Wuthnow’s research areas include Chinese foreign and security policy, Chinese military affairs, U.S.-China relations, and strategic developments in East Asia. In addition to his […]

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Elsa B. Kania is an Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. Her research focuses on China’s military strategy, defense innovation, and emerging technologies. Her book, Fighting to Innovate, should be forthcoming with the Naval Institute Press in 2022.

At CNAS, Ms. Kania has contributed […]

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Among my many blessings, it has been my good fortune to have enjoyed such a wonderful time in Princeton’s Politics Ph.D. program. My classmates there included Ian Chong, whom I’ve subsequently met up at with conferences across the United States and Asia. We’ve also overlapped as affiliates at Harvard and of the Columbia-Harvard China and […]

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