A Study On The Maintenance Of Sea Power Across The Taiwan Straits

Since 2012, China has initiated successively the strategy of "Establishing Sea Power" and the plan of "21st-century Maritime Silk Road" to upgrade the development of the marine industry and economic cooperation between countries along the sea route to the national strategic level. The initiatives of "Building a maritime power" and the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road" are significant strategies of sea power planning and implementation for China, as were the strategic fulcrum for China to explore and utilize the sea, to achieve co-ordination of land and sea and to promote sustainable economic and social development. However, the maritime disputes over the Diaoyu Islands and the South China Sea are seen as serious damage to Chinese marine sovereignty, rights and interests, and also the endangerment to the national oceanic security. China must take effective actions to handle properly maritime disputes, safeguard Chinese sea power potently and rationally, to create a peaceful and friendly environment for Chinese sea power development.Chinese sea power is the unity of maritime sovereignty, interests and rights, of which the centre is the Chinese maritime sovereignty. To study Chinese sea power, cross-straits relations between mainland China and Taiwan cannot be ignored. Under the "one China" framework, Taiwan Straits are in the separation of ownership and governance, and sovereignty of the ocean has been overlapped. Both sides of the Taiwan Straits have a common "sovereignty claims" and similar ocean "interest demands" in the East China Sea and South China Sea. Maritime disputes in East Asia pose an immense challenge to politics, economy and security between either side of the Taiwan Straits: constraining both sides from developing and utilizing marine resources, weakening the marine security for two sides, interfering the cross-strait relations, and damaging the mutual trust between mainland China and neighboring countries. When confronted with the grim maritime disputes and challenges, it has fell into a trouble to safeguard the ocean sovereignty for both sides: under the "one China" framework, mainland China and Taiwan share a common sea power, and authorities on both sides safeguard respectively the ocean sovereignty, not be able to cooperate to maintain the Chinese "Marine ancestral rights.”Since 1949, the development of cross-strait relations has undergone the process of the military confrontation, political antagonism and cross-strait reconciliation, and now peace and development have become the main theme between cross-strait relations. During the procedure of tortuous development for two sides of the Taiwan Straits, both maintain marine sovereignty through different assertions and measures. Successive leaders in China comply with the historical and legal regulations, adhere to the Chinese "Ocean ancestral rights" to maintain the marine sovereignty, and innovate safeguard measures according to the new political and economic situation: From the founding of the end of twentieth Century to the late 1970 s, China emphasized declaration of diplomacy and military deterrence, and stopped uncompromisingly Chinese territory division; From the end of the 1970 s to the late 1980 s, China advocated the approach of "setting disputes aside and seeking joint development" to deal with maritime disputes, attached importance to the economic interests of sea power, and promoted the open-up and development of coastal areas; from the late 1980 s of twentieth Century to 2015, China strengthened maritime legislation, consolidating Chinese Sea power from the legal principles; central govenment implemented the influential strategy of marine development, strengthened actual control and administration of the reefs and waters, promoted regional economic cooperation at sea, and advocated bilateral friendly consultations on maritime disputes. Compared to mainland China, previous "government" in Taiwan was vulnerable to the influence of "unification or independence consciousness", or lacked stability on its policy and rights advocating. During the "Chiang period", the Taiwan authorities resolutely defend "Ocean ancestral rights"; For "Lee Teng-hui," period, Taiwan authorities declared weakly sea power, refused to implement cross-strait cooperation; in "Chen Shui-bian era", the Taiwan authorities maintain its rights on the basis of "Taiwan independence"; For "Ma Ying-jeou”, Taiwan authorities claimed the principle of "sovereignty in Taiwan, putting aside disputes and seeking joint development", and refused to have cross-straits cooperation, but not collided with the safeguard stance and actions of mainland China. Both sides respectively safeguarded sovereignty, so it is difficult to form a joint force, impacting the effect of maintaining rights for both sides. Why cannot both sides of Taiwan Straits, which belongs to "one China", cooperate for maintenance of sea power? The main reason lies in that cross-strait cooperation faces many internal and external political constraints. First, the cross-strait political differences hinder cross-strait cooperation in the maintenance of sea power, including the cross-strait political positioning differences, lack of cross-strait political opposition and political mutual trust, both sides agree that political differences, Taiwan and other political opposition and balances.Firstly, the cross-strait political disagreements will hinder the cooperation on defending the ocean, including the disagreements on political identity, political opposition between two sides, lacking political mutual trust, and divergence in political identity, Political antagonism and balances within Taiwan Island. Secondly, Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan adopts a hostile attitude towards Mainland China, boycotts cross-strait cooperation to maintain sea power, caters to the US and Japan, and constraints Mainland China by external forces. Thirdly, the United States intervenes the disputes of the south China sea by its foreign diplomacy and military force, restrains Taiwan authorities’ tendency to cooperate with Chinese Mainland and hamper the cooperation between Mainland China and Taiwan. Fourthly, Japan draws US over to its side, lures Taiwan authorities by promise of gains, constraints and differentiates cross-strait cooperation on defending oceanic rights. Subjected to the above mentioned internal and external political obstacles, the Taiwan authorities expressed its position not to cooperate with Mainland China on defending oceanic sovereignty on different occasions.Since 2008, on the common political basis of adhering to the "1992 consensus" and opposing "Taiwan independence", both sides of the Taiwan Straits promoted the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, created a large exchange pattern in aspects including cross-strait politics, economy and culture etc. Two sides have many favorable conditions to safeguard the sea power with Cross-strait cooperation----both sides adhering to the "1992 consensus", continuing accumulation of mutual political trust, and establishing a large exchange pattern of peaceful development; In addition, there is strong public support and common interests demands in safeguarding legal rights of cross-strait cooperation. Mainland China has a positive attitude to cross-strait cooperation in the maintenance of sea power, and repeatedly calls for the Taiwan authorities to safeguard their rights and the common interests of the Chinese nation. Based on the current development of cross-strait relations and the current favorable situations, both sides can promote cross-strait cooperation in the following aspects: The first is to establish a normalization of "two track" negotiation mechanism on cross-strait maritime affairs; The second is to build a common discourse on both sides in marine rights; The third is to strengthen cross-strait economic and marine civil cooperation; The fourth is to promote cross-strait in strategic cooperation of "21st Century Maritime Silk Road". Cross-strait cooperation in maritime affairs should be established on the basis of sound political trust, step by step and from the easier to the more advanced level, gradually transiting from the marine economy and civil partnerships to joint maritime cooperation on law enforcement.Through the research and analysis of "defending cross-strait sea power", this paper comes to the following conclusions: Firstly, the maritime sovereignty dispute is only the external content of Chinese maritime disputes, strategic game by stakeholders, is the essence characteristic of Chinese sea disputes. Secondly, two sides should adhere to the "1992 consensus", continue to enhance political mutual trust, and establish political foundation of cross-strait cooperation. Finally, this paper presents an expectation: Once Democratic Progressive Party become ruling party again in Taiwan, how will the cross-Strait relations develop? Under the new pattern of cross-strait relations, how will mainland China maintain the sea power? This is the thought-provoking issue to be thought over by cross-strait political and academic fields.