China Adds a Dash on Its Map Around Taiwan

China has provocatively added a 10th “dash” to its map of the South China Sea, and this dash extends around Taiwan. The public release of the new 10-dash map has angered China’s neighbors, including the Philippines, Malaysia, India, Vietnam, Brunei, and Indonesia in addition to Taiwan. America’s former Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad speculated that Beijing intends to “acquire more territory and resources” in the South China Sea, to “increase pressure on Taiwan by edging closer to its boundaries,” and to test U.S. resolve.

The new map also shows Arunachal Pradesh, Aksai Chin, and the Doklam Plateau — territories claimed by India — as part of China. In response to the uproar by its neighbors, a Chinese spokesman simply said that “China’s stance on the South China Sea is consistent and clear.” And so it is. China’s “strategic clarity” about Taiwan is in stark contrast to America’s continued policy of “strategic ambiguity” toward the defense of Taiwan, a remnant of the latter years of the Cold War when China served as our de facto strategic ally against the Soviet Union. The Biden administration has thus far been noticeably silent about the 10-dash line. (READ MORE: Beidaihe Meeting Fails to Address Tanking Chinese Economy)

Khalilzad argues that China’s new map “has serious implications for the United States.” China is effectively claiming legal authority to deny America access to a region where we have treaty commitments to allies (Japan, the Philippines) and where we depend on the supply of strategic items. And he suggests that China’s neighbors “are watching for a U.S. response.” Now may be the right time to publicly abandon “strategic ambiguity” and unambiguously declare our commitment to defend Taiwan against a Chinese invasion or attack.

But any effective U.S. response must be more than words. American policymakers should exploit and channel the anger of China’s neighbors to increased security cooperation in the region. The respected strategist Edward Luttwak has repeatedly noted that China’s heavy-handed diplomacy is America’s best weapon to persuade the countries of the region to join with us to prevent Chinese hegemony. But we must lead by demonstrating our willingness and ability to defeat any Chinese attempt to forcibly annex Taiwan and exert dominance in the south China Sea, the western Pacific, and the Indian Ocean. That means more ships, more planes, more missiles, and more troops in the region. That is the language of deterrence that China will understand.

It is not, however, the language of the Biden administration, which is planning to cut the budget of the U.S. Navy, forcing the early retirement of nearly a dozen warships. Our current naval force of 294 ships will be reduced, while China’s navy is expected to exceed 400 warships in the next two years. The Washington Free Beacon reports that Rebeccah Heinrichs of the Hudson Institute opined that the Biden administration “seems to be under the illusion that the PRC will be deterred by strongly worded government reports and joint pressers with allies.” There is no sense in ending strategic ambiguity and issuing strongly worded statements in response to China’s new map unless we are willing to back it up with superior naval and air power in the western Pacific. (READ MORE: New Zealand Sobering Up to Chinese Threat)

The stakes could not be greater. Who commands the South China Sea (what Nicholas Spykman called the “Asiatic Mediterranean”), controls the western Pacific and the passageway to the Indian Ocean, a region that Robert Kaplan called the new “pivot” of global politics — a region that will decide the world’s future. With the publication of the new 10-dash line map, President Xi has claimed the region for China.

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