Beijing Increases South China Sea Pressure

The Security Side of Trump v. China 

In my almost four decades working with the U.S. intelligence community, things in one particular part of the world have never escalated the way they are now.

One international disagreement swirling over access to energy resources has developed a life of its own. The South China Sea has become the center for what could be the most concerted geopolitical contest since the Cold War. The dispute has all the earmarks of a conflict escalating from diplomatic to military.

As it becomes increasingly clear that the entering Trump Administration has decided China has replaced Russia as the primary international threat. Basic to the rise in geopolitical acrimony is the ongoing contest over who controls the South China Sea.

The Trump Administration must still lay down foreign policy priorities beyond ticking off Beijing in tweets or receiving phone calls from Taiwan.

There is an axiom in American politics: those devices directed toward domestic politics and instrumental in securing office often end up being the worst bases upon which to run foreign policy.

While the transition continues in Washington, it is hardly unexpected that China will be moving to advance its interests.

 
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