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Note: The opinions and comments stated in the following article, and views expressed by any contributor to In Homeland Security, do not represent the views of American Military University, American Public University System, its management or employees.

By William Tucker
Contributor, In Homeland Security

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry recently met with his Chinese counterpart in China to discuss North Korea and other regional issues.

The two nations released a joint statement on the talks in addition to a joint press conference that, while congenial, revealed a sharp contrast in interests and approaches to handling Pyongyang’s recent nuclear test. Secretary Kerry pushed for more sanctions, while Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi echoed the call for a new UN resolution, but stated, “The sanctions should not provoke new tension in the situation, still less destabilize the Korean peninsula.” Wang further added, “Sanctions are not an end in themselves.”

Kerry also visited Laos and Cambodia – looking for regional backing against Chinese territorial claims and the building of artificial islands in the South China Sea. Laos, a landlocked nation, supported the U.S. position, while Cambodia was more open to the Chinese call for bilateral talks on territorial waters. These statements, quite honestly, were expected.

Though China and the U.S. may have different interests and equally different approaches to handling regional issues, they do have one overriding similarity – they both wish to maintain open access to shipping lanes. However, they must be careful in preventing escalation or conflict that would run counter to this interest.

China is fully dependent on its exports to support its slowing economy and likewise finds itself in vital need of natural resources imported from regions across the globe, while the U.S. is a player in Chinese exports. The fact that both nations need to keep freedom of navigation on the world’s oceans is something that cannot be understated, but there is concern from China’s perspective that its weak geographical position puts it at a disadvantage to regional competitors like Japan and South Korea. However, these economies have some level of integration in that they both depend heavily on exports.

China may have a long coastline, but the Japanese islands to the east and the Philippine islands to the south hem it in. One could view the East China Sea and the South China Sea as inland seas that are vulnerable to blockade, thus preventing freedom of navigation.

China understands it position quite well and has been slowly integrating asymmetric methods such as anti-access and area denial strategies into the larger grand strategy. North Korea fits into this strategy not because the two nations coordinate, but Pyongyang tends to keep rivals South Korea and Japan busy. The islands dispute that run throughout the East China Sea and the South China Sea isn’t just about natural resources, but concern that U.S. allies making a move on these islands puts them closer to the Chinese coast. This is a highly undesirable situation that runs counter to the anti-access strategy.

A big question arises as to why the Chinese are pursuing these strategies now when they have been open to international trade for more than 30 years and their regional and international competitors haven’t changed. This seemingly hyper-activity largely stems from China’s growth and the concern that its military cannot adequately support the nation’s security needs especially since this unprecedented economic growth has slowed substantially. China is vulnerable not only to blockade by foreign powers, but more importantly, it is vulnerable to internal issues like internal social cohesion that constantly rise to the surface.

To illustrate this point, China still spends more money on internal security than it does on national defense. In fact, there has been an increase in social disruption in the form of protests and attacks in the last year. This is all happening in the midst of political purges and realignment of the military – tasks that are not historically undertaken with ease. China has numerous issues that have long left the spotlight – eclipsed by the rapid economic growth.

The status quo of China over the past three to four decades is rapidly changing, and the constant activity over territorial disputes and military modernization is, in many ways, just window dressing.

By Brett Daniel Shehadey
Special Contributor for In Homeland Security

After a long begrudging reluctance to even consider thinking about the possibility of new warfare with Russia, Western states have slowly taken some placating military steps to prepare for more aggression, but a worst case scenario is still within the realm of possibilities.

By John Ubaldi
Contributor, In Homeland Security

With the attention focused on Jonathan Gruber’s testimony and the recent Senate CIA torture report, missing was the coverage of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee seeking renewed authorization to use force against Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).