Oceanic strategy not aimed at US interests
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US Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters recently when en route to a security forum in Singapore that the US is not looking to "hold China down"?but warned China to bear in mind the "powerful lesson from the Soviet experience."
Though we are not assured of the sincerity of his first claim, the rest of Gates' words do offer great help in shaping China's future diplomacy.
Former US President Ronald Reagan was forced to unilaterally annul the Yalta System, the shared responsibility for world affairs amongthe great powers established at the end of World War II, due to the Soviet Union's ultra-aggressive diplomatic maneuver aimed at defeating the US. This history should never be forgotten.
All effective strategies are specific ones and China's recent strategic priority in East Asia centers on reunification with Taiwan and the breakthrough of the "first island chain" established by the US around China. But the "second island chain," starting from Guam and ending in the Philippines, should not be China's top target in the long run.
China's major rivalry, judged from the perspective of the Yalta System, is with Japan, not the US.
The validity and legitimacy of the strategic target should never be questioned, since China is just trying to restore the order of the Yalta System, through which China's interests should have been assured some 50 years ago.
Such claims are not against the interests of Southeast Asian countries, which were colonized during World War II, and therefore it will be difficult for Japan to edge China out or find allies in this region.
Even on the south end of the "first island chain," China's strategic aim remains realistic. And our existing conflicts with the ASEAN nations, and structural contradictions with Japan, still fall within the range of the Yalta System.
Therefore, China has completely different tasks to the north and south of Taiwan: a diplomatic approach in the South China Sea along with a hard-line attitude in the East China Sea. Otherwise, the ASEAN sides may be forced to join the US and Taiwan might become even more refractory.
But this is an absolute different story in the second island chain. The US Navy bases in and around this area, though seen as the remains of the Cold War, are valid and legitimate according to the Yalta System and any kind of infringement on the existing agreement will be considered as a betrayal of the alliances of World War II.
Hypothetical political conflicts and military tension between China and the US would only benefit the likes of Japan and European powerhouses.
Even if China drives the US out of this region, it would be impossible for us to take home the whole of the spoils. Hence, the only way to maximize each other's interests lies in negotiation and cooperation.
Though the intent to contain China was apparent up on the US return to Asia, Beijing tends to believe that Washington will be fully aware of the importance of maintaining the framework of the Yalta System. When the Sino-US relations were tense, former head of states and special envoys such as Henry Kissinger were always there to ease tension.
Hence, China should seize every opportunity to maintain the structure of the Yalta System, just as former leaders Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping did before, with the premise of defending natural sovereignty over the Taiwan question.
China is looking forward to the best result while getting prepared for the worst.
But unlike the US' ultimate goal of hampering China and driving it further away from the Pacific, China's military strength is aimed at restoring the validity of the Yalta System to what it ought to be and with this China's rightful claim of Taiwan. Such claims are rational and reasonable and have a bright future ahead.
