CHINESE STRATEGY IN THE SOUTH CHINA SEA

The past decade has seen a notable increase in tensions in the South China Sea. Superficially the new situation has been triggered by Chinese territorial claims centering around the “Nine Dash Line.” While there is a large body of literature digging out China's strategic interests behind its increasing assertiveness in the contested waters, it falls short of an overall investigation of Beijing's maritime grand strategy—in which the South China Sea occupies a critical position. The aim of this article is therefore to examine the geostrategic, geopolitical, and geoeconomic significance of the South China Sea which comes to the fore in China's grand strategy. It argues that these sea waters are critical in Beijing's plans to establish and protect its status as a global maritime power in light of the sea energy reservoir, fisheries, and other vital maritime economic interests to reinforce its economic powerhouse. Beijing's power projection and its increasing assertiveness in the contested waters have also served in the pursuit of controlling vital sea lanes of communication in the Indian Ocean. Significantly, the South China Sea preoccupies Beijing's leadership's strategic pursuit of being a global sea power as a balancing act vis-a-vis the United States in the Indo-Pacific region and intensifying the blockade of Taiwan.