Prashanth Parameswaran, “Andrew Erickson and Ryan Martinson on China and the Maritime Gray Zone,” The Diplomat, 14 May 2019.
How China thinks about and acts in the maritime gray zone, and what that means for the region’s future.
Over the past few years, as China has continued its expansion in the maritime domain, scholars and practitioners alike […]
Andrew S. Erickson, “The Next Generation of China’s Navy: Transformation and Transition for the PLAN,” The Diplomat, 30 January 2017.
As China’s navy undergoes a change in leadership, what lies ahead for the rapidly modernizing service?
On January 17, 2017, 71-year old Admiral Wu Shengli retired from a 41-year career culminating in nearly 11 years as commander […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Kevin Bond, “Archaeology and the South China Sea,” The Diplomat, 20 July 2015.
A new maritime archaeology vessel is another component in China’s strategy for the South China Sea.
Recently, Vietnamese and Western media resumed reporting on China’s HD-981 oil rig, after it was redeployed to disputed waters, dredging up memories of the […]
Alexander Sullivan and Andrew S. Erickson, “The Big Story Behind China’s New Military Strategy,” The Diplomat, 5 June 2015.
China is becoming “more willing and able” to stake and defend its interests overseas.
As China reemerges as one of the globe’s leading powers, just what type of actor it will be on the world stage has become […]
Andrew S. Erickson, “Revelations on China’s Maritime Modernization: The U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence Offers a Wealth of New Information on the PLA Navy,” The Diplomat, 16 April 2015.
To its first unclassified report on China’s navy in six years, the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) has just added sophisticated posters detailing Chinese ships and […]
Carnes Lord and Andrew S. Erickson, “Bases for America’s Asia-Pacific Rebalance (Part 2 of 2),” The Diplomat, 6 May 2014.
Part two of a two part series evaluating the evolving network of US bases in the Asia-Pacific.
The second part of a two-part series that evaluates the United States’ evolving network of bases in the Asia-Pacific and which […]
Carnes Lord and Andrew S. Erickson, “Bases for America’s Asia-Pacific Rebalance (Part 1 of 2),” The Diplomat, 2 May 2014.
Part one of a two-part series evaluating the evolving network of US bases in the Asia-Pacific.
The first part of a two-part series that evaluates the United States’ evolving network of bases in the Asia-Pacific and the […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Austin M. Strange, “China and the Far Seas: China’s Far Seas Presence Enables it to Escort Syria’s Chemical Weapons Marked for Destruction,” The Diplomat, 10 January 2014.
While the U.S. and its allies perceive Beijing’s conduct as increasingly destabilizing in the Yellow, East, and South China Seas (“Near Seas”), China continues to […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Austin M. Strange, “China and the International Antipiracy Effort,” The Diplomat, 1 November 2013.
China has achieved many firsts under the umbrella of antipiracy. These include its first major contributions to securing sea lines of communication (SLOC), a commendable start. World navies do better at protecting vulnerable maritime regions when they cooperate. […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Austin M. Strange, “Sunk Costs: China and the Pirates,” The Diplomat, 26 September 2013.
Maritime piracy is one of many non-traditional security challenges that confront China and other states in the 21st century. After flourishing for over two decades, why has piracy elicited a greater response from China than have other security […]
Andrew S. Erickson, “Pentagon Report Reveals Chinese Military Developments,” The Diplomat, 8 May 2013.
After a year-long hiatus, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)’s annual report on Chinese military developments is back and better than ever. Its 43-page 2012 predecessor was widely criticized for arriving far later than Congress requested and containing little substance or new data. But […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Adam P. Liff, “China’s Military Development, Beyond the Numbers,” The Diplomat, 12 March 2013.
While reports warn of China’s rising military budget and lack of transparency, numbers and hyped headlines often cloud the bigger picture.
Given China’s rapid rise in all aspects of national power, as well as its reluctance to release specific […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Gabriel B. Collins, “Limited Liftoff Looming: Y-20 Transport Prepares for 1st Test Flight,” The Diplomat, 8 January 2013.
In 2011 and 2012, China flight-tested stealth fighter prototypes developed by Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (J-20) and Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (J-31). In 2013, Xi’an Aircraft Corporation (XAC) will look to get into the new aircraft game by […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Gabriel B. Collins, “The ‘Long Pole in the Tent’: China’s Military Jet Engines,” The Diplomat, 7 December 2012.
Much has been made of Beijing’s growing military might. Developing and producing high-performance jet engines could be the toughest — but most rewarding — advance.
The PLA Navy surprised many foreign observers yet again when […]
Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “‘Death by Blue Water Navy’ Distracts from China’s Real Military Focus,” The Diplomat, 21 November 2012.
(Editor’s Note: Please see “China’s Real Blue Water Navy” and Greg Autry’s response.)
Greg Autry’s passionate response to our recent piece on “China’s Real Blue Water Navy” is somewhat ironic, as he has missed […]
Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “U.S. Navy Take Notice: China is Becoming a World-Class Military Shipbuilder,” The Diplomat, 1 November 2012.
The engine of China’s naval rise has flown under the radar – until now.
China’s military shipyards now are surpassing Western European, Japanese, and Korean military shipbuilders in terms of both the types and […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Gabriel B. Collins, “China’s Real Blue Water Navy,” The Diplomat, 30 August 2012.
China’s navy is not poised to speed across the Pacific to threaten America the way the Soviet Union once did, if not worse. This despite Peter Navarro and Greg Autry’s over-the-top polemic, Death by China: Confronting the Dragon—A Global […]
Andrew S. Erickson, “The Future is Now,” The Diplomat, 24 April 2012.
The U.S. military has lots of options to stop the PLA from paralyzing its forces. But business as usual won’t do.
The U.S. isn’t “returning” to the Asia-Pacific, it never left in the first place. Here, in the world’s most strategically and economically dynamic region, China […]
Andrew S. Erickson and Gabriel B. Collins, “Enter China’s Security Firms,” The Diplomat, 21 February 2012.
Chinese private security companies are seeing an opportunity as the U.S. withdraws troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. But plenty of complications await them.
A security vacuum is developing around Chinese workers overseas. The recent kidnapping of 29 Chinese workers in Sudan […]
Chinese Undersea Warfare: Development, Capabilities, Trends
Maritime Gray Zone Operations: Challenges and Countermeasures in the Indo-Pacific
Oxford Bibliography: “The People’s Liberation Army (PLA)”
China’s Climate Cooperation Smokescreen: A Roadmap for Seeing Through the Trap and Countering with Competition
Large-Scale Amphibious Warfare in Chinese Military Strategy
Rebalancing U.S. Forces: Basing and Forward Presence in the Asia-Pacific
China’s Near Seas Combat Capabilities
Chinese Anti-Ship Ballistic Missile (ASBM) Development: Drivers, Trajectories and Strategic Implications
Asia’s Rising Energy and Resource Nationalism: Implications for the United States, China, and the Asia-Pacific Region
Chinese Aerospace Power: Evolving Maritime Roles
China’s S-Curve Trajectory: Structural Factors Will Likely Slow the Growth of China’s Economy and Comprehensive National Power
China, the United States, and 21st-Century Sea Power: Defining a Maritime Security Partnership
China Goes to Sea: Maritime Transformation in Comparative Historical Perspective
China’s Energy Strategy: The Impact on Bejing’s Maritime Policies
China’s Future Nuclear Submarine Force
Chinese Mine Warfare: A PLA Navy 'Assassin’s Mace' Capability
China’s Nuclear Force Modernization
