Is There A Chinese President Xi Doctrine?

China's President Xi Jinping laughs during the Global Leaders' Meeting on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment at the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan, New York, September 27, 2015. REUTERS/CARLO ALLEGRI

Michael Auslin, War On The Rocks: In Search Of The Xi Doctrine

As President Obama sought to make his final mark in Asia, visiting Vietnam and Japan last week, he confronted the increasingly clear strategic goals of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Though Xi continues to focus on domestic issues, including a weakening economy, and cracks down on foreign non-governmental organizations with a new repressive law, he is also making clear that China intends to shape East Asia’s security environment. Although not formally articulated as such, put together, his statements form what could be called the Xi doctrine. This “doctrine” appears to reserve to China the right to use force to intervene in conflicts or crisis situations outside its borders, in order to preserve or create a balance of power favorable to its interests. As such, it poses a challenge to U.S. policymakers, who must uphold the regional rules-based order that has provided stability for over a half-century while at the same time ensuring that Beijing and Washington avoid conflict.

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WNU Editor: His number one focus is on the Chinese economy .... but in regards to foreign affairs he has been blunt. No war on the Korean peninsula (that is a message to North Korea), Taiwan will not be permitted to claim independence (but for all practical purposes it is independent but they cannot say it publicly), pressure Japan on territorial claims, assert its presence and territorial claims in the South China Sea, establish bases and alliances in the Indian Ocean (a military base in Djibouti, naval agreements with Pakistan) .... and all of this is being done to position China as the super-power in Asia .... which many are now acknowledging will probably be the defacto case in a few years (if not now).