September 04, 2014
The Challenge of Responding to Maritime Coercion
In this first working paper produced as part of CNAS’ Maritime Strategy Project, Dr. Patrick Cronin provides a framework for further thinking about both the need to impose costs on bad behavior and gray zone assertiveness in maritime Asia, and the set of strategies best able to accomplish behavioral change while preserving the overall peaceful character of the region.
After making the case for why cost imposition, or balancing, is a critical element of an overall portfolio along with engagement and binding, Dr. Cronin suggests a range of diplomatic, informational, military and economic measures that could raise the costs of assertive actions in Indo-Pacific waters, as well as some challenges and risks associated with these strategies. Overall, policymakers must be broad-minded in their thinking about how to preserve and adapt an inclusive, rules-based system of open access to the global commons. Future papers in this series will address other types and facets of cost-imposing strategies for the Indo-Pacific. Check back for frequent updates here.
More from CNAS
-
Trump 2.0 and Security in Asia
Donald Trump is bringing his "America First" agenda back to U.S. foreign policy. What could this mean for Japan and the partners in Asia? Akira Igata, an Adjunct Senior Fellow...
By Akira Igata
-
Syria: What Happened and What Comes Next
After more than a decade of civil war involving major interventions from foreign powers, over the past week a rebel alliance incredibly rapidly gained control of city after ci...
By Richard Fontaine
-
The Future of Russia and China in Central Asia
Despite the many proclamations that Russian and Chinese interests would collide in Central Asia, Moscow and Beijing continue to work together in service of their shared object...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend
-
Russia and China in Central Asia
Executive Summary Despite the many proclamations that Russian and Chinese interests would collide in Central Asia, Moscow and Beijing continue to work together in service of t...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Lisa Curtis, Kate Johnston & Nathaniel Schochet