Andrew S. Erickson

Words matter. Phrases such as “expansionist view” and “territorial revisionism” should not be used lightly when discussing the unfortunately painful, understandably sensitive, and fortunately not repeatable history of East Asia. It is a pity that Prof. Dudden did not place her assertions in a broader, more balanced comparative context by at least briefly mentioning the […]

Wonder what Mao would have thought of all this lavishing vast personal wealth on the most decadent of foreign brands…
Devin Friedman, “The Bling Dynasty,” GQ (January 2015).
You probably know that people are getting rich in China. They lag only behind America in sheer number of billionaires. And you probably know that all of that money […]

Yet again, CMSI’s Ryan Martinson demonstrates why his publications are always mandatory reading for anyone trying to understand China’s maritime policies and actions. I really cannot commend his work to you more highly. If you haven’t already done so, go back and read his previous articles published over the past few months. You’ll be glad […]

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “China’s Public Hospital Governance Reforms are Setting the Stage for Corporatization,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 88 (26 January 2015).

With appropriate legal and policy support, corporatization could begin within the next 2-3 years.
Key Points:

China’s public hospital reform experiments thus far have laid a foundation for corporatization that is stronger than […]

Ronald O’Rourke, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 23 December 2014), RL33153.
Summary
China is building a modern and regionally powerful Navy with a modest but growing capability for conducting operations beyond China’s near-seas region. The question of how the United States should respond to China’s military modernization effort, including its […]

Defense News Asia Bureau Chief Wendell Minnick has published an 800-page directory on foreign aviation companies doing business in China (commercial and defense). The book includes the names of Chinese agents handling the company account, press releases, chronologies, speeches, and index. Directory of Foreign Aviation Companies in China: Commercial and Defense is available via Amazon.
Wendell […]

Peter Hore; review of Carnes Lord and Andrew S. Erickson, eds., Rebalancing U.S. Forces: Basing and Forward Presence in the Asia-Pacific (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 2014); Warships: International Fleet Review (December 2014).
… Its meat and potatoes is the strategic pivot being carried out by the USA, which will see 60 percent of the US Navy’s operational effort […]

Review of Carnes Lord and Andrew S. Erickson, eds., Rebalancing U.S. Forces: Basing and Forward Presence in the Asia-Pacific (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 2014); Work Boat World (October 2014): 45.
Our world continues to change very rapidly. The rise of China… led to much re-thinking among America’s defense intelligentsia.
At the forefront of this, as usual, is the Naval […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “Beijing Projects Power through Cooperation, Intimidation,” Nikkei Asian Review, 18 December 2014.
China’s military development offers costs and benefits for its neighbors and the world. To understand why, look at two factors: technology and geography.
     In the contested “near seas” off China’s coast (the Yellow, East China, and South China seas), Beijing is […]

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “Volkswagen’s China Dealership Expansions Suggest Substantial Upside for Continued Growth in Car Sales—and Gasoline Consumption,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 87 (17 December 2014).

China’s passenger car sales volumes have been strong thus far in 2014, with roughly 15% YoY growth between January and November 2014. Gasoline demand has followed suit, […]

A great debate whose time has come. Personally, I think Martinson strikes the right balance, but both experts have made useful contributions to the open source literature on this important yet understudied topic!
China’s consolidating Coast Guard is certainly acting in aggregate to further a larger national strategy of some sort; the question is, precisely how, […]

Gregory Viscusi and Nicole Gaouette, “The World Hot Spots You’ve Never Heard of That Could Ruin 2015,” Bloomberg, 16 December 2014.
The Spratlys. Narva. Fezzan.
These places risk becoming household names in 2015. Can’t locate them on a map? Well, a lot of people couldn’t have found Donetsk in Ukraine or Raqqa in Syria as 2014 got under […]

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “Gasoline, Natural Gas, and Aluminum are Bright Spots for China Commodity Demand in 2014 as Steel and Coal Weaken,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 86 (12 December 2014).

Gasoline, natural gas, and aluminum are China’s commodity demand bright spots so far in 2014—amidst a significant downturn in consumption of key basic […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “Asia Get Ready: Is This China’s Vision of Future Aircraft Carrier Designs?” The National Interest, 8 December 2014.
Originally published as: Andrew S. Erickson, “Have We Just Glimpsed China’s Vision of Future Aircraft Carrier Designs?” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国 (6 December 2014).
A high-caliber model manufacturer may just have provided a unique glimpse […]

Ryan D. Martinson, “The Militarization of China’s Coast Guard,” The Diplomat, 21 November 2014.
Plans for China’s still nascent coast guard suggest troubled times ahead in disputed waters.
With new “China Coast Guard” ships entering service at regular intervals, it is easy to forget that the China Coast Guard as an organization does not yet exist in […]

Click here to read Amy Chang’s interview in New York Times.
Download full text of the report here.
CNAS Releases Report on China’s Cyber Strategy
Report Reveals the Political, Economic, and Military Objectives
of China’s Cybersecurity Strategy
Washington, December 3 – Center for a New American Security (CNAS) Technology and National Security Program Research Associate Amy Chang has written a new report, “Warring State: China’s Cybersecurity Strategy.” […]

Wendell Minnick, “China’s CX-1 Missile Now Exportable,” Defense News, 1 December 2014.
TAIPEI — China’s new CX-1 supersonic anti-ship cruise missile is ready for export to America’s friends and foes alike, with potential markets including Iran, Pakistan and African and South American countries.
On display at the recent Airshow China in Zhuhai, the missile resembles India’s BrahMos […]

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “Mapping China’s Gas Pipeline Buildout: Follow Lights and Railroads,” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 85 (25 November 2014).

China’s gas supply deficit continues to rise. It is being propelled by booming demand and slowing domestic gas production increases (the deficit was 45% of demand as of June 2014). Now looming on […]

Gabriel B. Collins and Andrew S. Erickson, “Tank Watch: What Do China’s November 2014 SPR Data Tell Us?” China SignPost™ (洞察中国) 84 (24 November 2014).

On November 20, China’s National Statistics Bureau unveiled a G-20 surprise by publishing inventory data for four of the country’s strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) sites: Dalian, Huangdao, Zhenhai, and Zhoushan. These […]