Andrew S. Erickson

A sweeping PLA reorganization is underway, with vast, far-reaching implications! Here’s what to read on this vital subject—analysis that’s most reliable and precise.
All content posted here with explicit written permission from the publisher.
Kenneth Allen, Dennis J. Blasko, and John F. Corbett, “The PLA’s New Organizational Structure: What is Known, Unknown and Speculation (Part 2),” Jamestown China Brief 16.4 […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “Chinese Military Maritime and Aerospace Development,” presented at Princeton-Harvard China and the World Program International Workshop, Lehigh University, Lehigh, PA, 3 March 2016.

Princeton-Harvard China and the World Program: Lectures & Workshop—3-4 March 2016
March 3, 2016 – 8:50am to March 4, 2016 – 8:50pm

CWP-Lehigh Conference Flyer
For March 3-4th, 2016 The China and the […]

A brilliant article that should command widespread intellectual attention.
Stephen G. Brooks and William C. Wohlforth, “The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers in the Twenty-first Century: China’s Rise and the Fate of America’s Global Position,” International Security 40.3 (Winter 2015/16): 7-53.
Abstract:
Unipolarity is arguably the most popular concept used to analyze the U.S. global position […]

A modern mobile strategic SAM system, the 100-km-range HQ-9 is similar to Russia’s S-300PMU. Based on the information available, and resemblance to satellite imagery of an HQ-9 production facility near Beijing, it appears that China indeed moved two firing batteries of four launchers each to Woody Island within the past several weeks.

Please note: the HQ-9 […]

RAND Senior Political Scientist Dr. Michael Chase has just called a most interesting item to my attention: the PLA Rocket Force (PLARF)’s official music video (further details in Global Times article appended below). In it, the PLARF showcases its official song, in which it bills itself as “The Long Sword of a Great Power.”
Click here […]

A must-read packed with cutting-edge data and analysis on an important, timely topic!
Andrew Scobell, Arthur S. Ding, Phillip C. Saunders, and Scott W. Harold, eds., The People’s Liberation Army and Contingency Planning in China (Washington, DC: National Defense University Press, 2015).
How will China use its increasing military capabilities in the future? China faces a complicated […]

Victor Robert Lee, “Satellite Images: China Manufactures Land at New Sites in the Paracel Islands,” The Diplomat, 13 February 2016.
Posted with author’s explicit permission.

Image Credit: Victor Robert Lee, Digital Globe & ImageSat International
Satellite images show dredging and land filling by China at two new sites in the South China Sea, both in the Amphitrite group […]

A sweeping PLA reorganization is underway, with vast, far-reaching implications! Here’s what to read on this vital subject—analysis that’s most reliable and precise:

Kenneth Allen, Dennis J. Blasko, and John F. Corbett, “The PLA’s New Organizational Structure: What is Known, Unknown and Speculation (Part 1),” Jamestown China Brief 16.3 (4 February 2016).

Note: This article is part of a two-part […]

Andrew S. Erickson and Joel Wuthnow, “Why Islands Still Matter in Asia: The Enduring Significance of the Pacific ‘Island Chains’,” The National Interest, 5 February 2016.

The Western Pacific “island chains” are a persistent feature of Asia’s maritime geography. While their underlying fundaments remain constant, their specific strategic importance has evolved over time. Different major powers […]

Christopher P. Cavas, “Powers Jockey for Pacific Island Chain Influence,” Interview of Andrew S. Erickson, Defense News, 1 February 2016.

Pacific Island Chains Measure Regional Influence
WASHINGTON — The extensive chains of Pacific islands ringing China have been described as a wall, a barrier to be breached by an attacker or strengthened by a defender. They are seen […]

Andrew S. Erickson and Conor M. Kennedy, “Trailblazers in Warfighting: The Maritime Militia of Danzhou,” Center for International Maritime Security (CIMSEC), 1 February 2016.

This is the second article in a five-part series exploring Hainan Province’s maritime militia, an important but little-understood player in the South China Sea and participant in its ongoing disputes. Our first article covered the maritime militia […]

Thanks to Nizar Manek for bringing this to my attention!
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hong Lei’s Regular Press Conference on January 21, 2016
Q: President Ismail Omar Guelleh of Djibouti announced on January 20 that a series of agreements have been signed with the Chinese side to set up a free trade zone, expand Djibouti’s role for transshipment […]

Andrew S. Erickson and Joel Wuthnow, “Barriers, Springboards and Benchmarks: China Conceptualizes the Pacific ‘Island Chains’,” The China Quarterly, available on CJO 2016 doi:10.1017/S0305741016000011; published online by Cambridge University Press 21 January 2016.   
A FirstView version of the forthcoming article online may be accessed at http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0305741016000011.
Click here to read PDF version.
This FirstView version of the article, […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “Six Decades of Chinese Space History: A Comparative History of Rocket and Satellite Development,” in Andrew S. Erickson, ed., History of Rocketry and Astronautics: Proceedings of the 47th History Symposium of the International Academy of Astronautics, American Astronautical Society (AAS) History Series, 45 (San Diego, CA: Univelt, 2015), 205-64.           PART 1           PART 2
China’s […]

Andrew S. Erickson, ed., History of Rocketry and Astronautics: Proceedings of the 47th History Symposium of the International Academy of Astronautics, American Astronautical Society (AAS) History Series, 45 (San Diego, CA: Univelt, 2015).
Author:

Andrew S. Erickson, “Preface,” ix.          PREFACE & VOLUME INFORMATION
Andrew S. Erickson, “Six Decades of Chinese Space History: A Comparative History […]

Michael J. Green, Kathleen H. Hicks, Mark F. Cancian, Asia-Pacific Rebalance 2025: Capabilities, Presence, and Partnerships (Washington, DC: Center for Strategic & International Studies, 19 January 2016).
An Independent Review of U.S. Defense Strategy in the Asia-Pacific
Contributors: Ernest Bower, Victor Cha, Heather Conley, Zack Cooper, Ryan Crotty, Melissa Dalton, Bonnie Glaser, Rebecca Hersman, Murray Hiebert, Christopher Johnson, Thomas Karako, […]

Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 21 December 2015), 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 […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “America’s Security Role in the South China Sea,” Naval War College Review 69.1 (Winter 2016): 7-20.
In this issue, Andrew S. Erickson argues for safeguarding the long-term future of the global maritime commons, including the freedom of the vital international sea-lanes of the South China Sea and the airspace above.
From the Editors:
As the […]

Alastair Iain Johnston, “The Evolution of Interstate Security Crisis-Management Theory and Practice in China,” Naval War College Review 69.1 (Winter 2016): 28–71.
Alastair Iain Johnston is the Governor James Albert Noe and Linda Noe Laine Professor of China in World Affairs at Harvard University. He codirects the Princeton-Harvard China and the World program. His published books […]