China and the Indian Ocean Region China has been incessantly increasing its footprint in the Indian Ocean in the past decade by undertaking port infrastructure projects, managing and running ports, gaining port access for naval platforms, acquiring military bases and conducting naval exercises with countries in the region.

Steady Growth. Although some signs of a somewhat waning economy are now visible in China (economic growth rate sliding down from 10.5% in 2010 to 7.4% in 2014) she has experienced a steady growth cycle for the past two decades, catapulting the country as the world’s second largest economy. Click here to read full Paper

A glance at the history of the last few centuries, since at least the seventeenth, indicates that the opening decades of all centuries are times of upheaval. New forces frequently emerge, new ideologies, or technologies. These take time to play themselves out. Without being deterministic about such historical cycles, it seems hard to escape the conclusion that we are witnessing one more turn, and that it will be a while before stability will return.​

Promulgations of A Super-Power In April 2013, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) released her eighth Defence White Paper, titled as ‘The Diversified Employment of China’s Armed Forces’. This exercise has been undertaken bi-annually since the early 2000’s, and is in consonance with China’s inexorable claim to super-power status that brings with it an expectation among the international community that the contender would want to enunciate her visions and goals for them to take note of the coming dispensation. Click here to read full Paper