East China Sea flare-up: learning the wrong lessons in Beijing

A dangerous situation: the US’s two-pronged response

For the US, which is often allied or friends with parties that have territorial disputes with the PRC, this situation will become ever more dangerous. Chinese miscalculations (which are essentially being encouraged) will inevitably draw in the US if the situation starts to spiral out of control. Washington needs to engage in a two-pronged approach.

First, the US needs to make clear to its allies that their policy of preemptive concession and non-response to Chinese irascibility is ultimately self-defeating. Not only does it encourage the Chinese to be more belligerent and less conciliatory, but it is also more likely to escalate future crises. And Washington has no intention to help those who will not help themselves.

Simultaneously, the US, in its own policies, needs to be more coherent and co-ordinated. China resorting so promptly to the economic threat of curtailing rare earth exports, for example, should be a clear signal to American decision-makers that it is time to reexamine its decisions influencing domestic exploration and exploitation of said materials. Similarly, Chinese efforts to exclude the US Navy from operating in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea should be met with a recommitment of the US to uphold its treaty and legal obligations to allies and friends in the Pacific.

America: “returning” to Asia

If the US is going to argue that it is “returning” to Asia, it needs to make clear that, this time, it is here to stay. Such a commitment requires not only maintaining a strong military presence but deepening its diplomatic and trade ties to the region. The American presence has always been multifaceted, and its “return” should reflect all those aspects.