Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Availability

Open Access Thesis

Keywords

China--Armed Forces; China--Military policy; China--Military relations; China; Armed Forces; Military policy; Military relations;

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to address the contradiction between China's statements that indicate that it now feels more secure, given the changes in the international environment in the post-Cold War era, and China's efforts to rapidly modernize the People's Liberation Army. This purpose emerged after reviewing the statements from Chinese leadership on China's security perceptions in the post-Cold War era and examining the recent trends toward increased military budgets and modernization of the Air Force and the Navy. In order to understand and analyze the contradiction, an in-depth discussion of China's security perceptions, or the motivations behind the modernization of the PLA, was necessary. While China may now view a large-scale war involving superpowers as less likely, China perceives many new, smaller-scale threats to its security. For example, recent tensions in the South China Sea involving territorial disputes between China and many of its neighbors are viewed as an immediate threat to China's sovereignty. China also views problems with Taiwan and the military superiority of India as potential regional threats to its security. In addition, Sino-Japanese relations are becoming more tense due to uncertainty about the future of the region given the changes in the post-Cold War era. China now views its relationships with both the U.S. and Russia as in a state of flux that could possibly take a tum for the worse. Finally, China took notice of the high-tech weapons on display in the Persian Gulf War, and realized that in order to be prepared to defend its regional interests it must place the modernization of its military as a top priority. The result of China's changing perceptions has been a shift in China's military doctrine accompanied by the modernization of its Air Force and Navy. The implications of the modernization process include a spiraling arms race in the region that has the potential to grow out of control, strained relations between China and Japan that are forcing both sides to take actions to secure their control in the region, and an arms sales policy, used by China to fund its modernization drive, that many view as irresponsible and dangerous. China's military modernization serves to fuel the fire of uncertainty and mutual distrust that exists in Southeast Asia in the post-Cold War environment. In order to avoid conflict in the region, security measures must be taken. However, as many obstacles exist as do possibilities for a regional security mechanism to come together. The ties that bond these countries together are strong and the stakes are high. The United States also has many interests in future of China and the future of the region. U.S. policy toward China must be based on multilateralism. The U.S. role in the region must be based on the premise that the U.S. will remained engaged. Furthermore, the U.S. must be willing to participate in regional security efforts. U.S. relations with Southeast Asia have never come easy, thus the post-Cold War era provides an opportunity to renew and redefine relationships in order to better ·protect the interests of all involved.

Year of Submission

1994

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Department of Political Science

First Advisor

Taifa Yu

Second Advisor

Pita Agbese

Third Advisor

Dhirendra Vajpeyi

Comments

If you are the rightful copyright holder of this thesis and wish to have it removed from the Open Access Collection, please submit a request to scholarworks@uni.edu and include clear identification of the work, preferably with URL.

Date Original

1994

Object Description

1 PDF file (102 leaves)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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