Andrew S. Erickson

Happy to see my colleagues Peter Dutton and Ryan Martinson quoted in this recently-published report!
Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress, RL33153 (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 18 September 2017).
Summary
China since the early to mid-1990s has been steadily building a modern and powerful navy. China’s navy in recent years has emerged […]

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Ronald O’Rourke, Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Disputes Involving China: Issues for Congress, R42784 (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 15 September 2017).
 
KEY EXCERPTS:
p. 14
1972 Convention on Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs)
China and the United States, as well as more than 150 other countries (including all those bordering on the South East and South China Seas other […]

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Happy to see my colleagues Peter Dutton and Ryan Martinson quoted in this recently-published report!
Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress, RL33153 (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 18 August 2017).
Summary
China is building a modern and regionally powerful navy with a limited but growing capability for conducting operations beyond China’s near-seas region. […]

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Ronald O’Rourke, Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Disputes Involving China: Issues for Congress, R42784 (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 17 August 2017).
 
Key Excerpts:
p. 14
1972 Convention on Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs)
China and the United States, as well as more than 150 other countries (including all those bordering on the South East and South China Seas other […]

Continue Reading

National Air and Space Intelligence Center, Ballistic and Cruise Missile Threat (Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH, 2017).
Click here to read the full text of the report. 
Issued four years after the previous iteration, this detailed report is to be welcomed. Perhaps due to the vagaries of bureaucratic processes, it may not mesh perfectly with other official statements, but […]

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Andrew S. Erickson, “New Pentagon China Report Highlights the Rise of Beijing’s Maritime Militia,” The National Interest, 7 June 2017.
Pentagon experts have finally keyed in on one of the most important aspects of China’s strategy to dominate the waterways of the Asia-Pacific.
Issued yesterday, the Pentagon’s annual report to Congress on China’s military and security developments contains a […]

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In a long-overdue and welcome breakthrough, the Pentagon’s latest report on China’s Military and Security Developments contains substantial content on China’s Maritime Militia.
Previously, China’s Maritime Militia was mentioned by Ronald O’Rourke in his Congressional Research Service report and by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, which recommended that the Department of Defense address this […]

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Since I couldn’t find a single-source location on the Internet, I decided to make my own. Now you can download PDFs of the Department of Defense’s China reports directly by year:
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
 
Additionally, here are some highlights from, and analysis of, several of the most recent reports:
2016
Andrew S. Erickson, “How Good Are They? The Latest Insights Into […]

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Click here to read the full text of the 2017 report.
Office of the Secretary of Defense, Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China 2017 (Arlington, VA: Department of Defense, 6 June 2017).

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Daniel R. Coats, Director of National Intelligence, Statement for the Record, “Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community,” Senate Armed Services Committee, 23 May 2017.
 (Information available as of April 24, 2017 was used in the preparation of this assessment.)
Please scroll down for an outline of the contents, as well as key excerpts that I […]

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Happy to see my colleagues Peter Dutton, Ryan Martinson, and Conor Kennedy cited so extensively in this report!
Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 12 May 2017), RL33153.
Summary
China is building a modern and regionally powerful navy with a limited but growing capability for conducting operations beyond […]

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Ronald O’Rourke, Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Disputes Involving China: Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 19 May 2017), R42784.
 
Key Excerpts:
USE OF CHINA COAST GUARD SHIPS, FISHING BOATS/MARITIME MILITIA, AND OIL EXPLORATION PLATFORMS ………………………………………………………………………………………. 25
p. 14
1972 Convention on Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs)
China and the United States, as well as more than 150 other […]

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The latest edition of the following report addresses China Maritime Militia (CMM) activity specifically, offering more coverage than the previous edition of 8 June 2016. It’s long overdue for reports from the Department of Defense, Defense Intelligence Agency, Office of Naval Intelligence, and other organizations charged with issuing specific public estimates added their own authoritative statements […]

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Happy to see my colleagues Peter Dutton, Ryan Martinson, and Conor Kennedy cited so extensively in this report!
Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 29 March 2017), RL33153.
Summary
China is building a modern and regionally powerful navy with a limited but growing capability for conducting operations beyond […]

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Admiral Gary Roughead, USN (Ret.), “As Trump Assesses China, Start with Facts Not Theory,” Forbes, 20 January 2017.
… For too long the changes in Chinese military capacity, the numbers of ships and aircraft, have not been part of the public discussion. Now is the time to do some real studying and dig into the facts, […]

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The latest edition of the following report addresses China Maritime Militia (CMM) activity specifically. It’s high time that reports from the Department of Defense, Defense Intelligence Agency, Office of Naval Intelligence, and other organizations charged with issuing specific public estimates added their own authoritative statements on this vital issue!
Ronald O’Rourke, Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone […]

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Ronald O’Rourke, Maritime Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Disputes Involving China: Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 8 June 2016), R42784.
Summary
China’s actions for asserting and defending its maritime territorial and exclusive economic zone (EEZ) claims in the East China (ECS) and South China Sea (SCS), particularly since late 2013, have heightened concerns among […]

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Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 17 June 2016), RL33153.
Summary
China is building a modern and regionally powerful navy with a limited but growing capability for conducting operations beyond China’s near-seas region. Observers of Chinese and U.S. military forces view China’s improving naval capabilities as posing a potential […]

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Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 31 May 2016), RL33153.
Summary
China is building a modern and regionally powerful navy with a limited but growing capability for conducting operations beyond China’s near-seas region. Observers of Chinese and U.S. military forces view China’s improving naval capabilities as posing a potential […]

Continue Reading