China-us Relations Under The Perspective Of The South China Sea Issue Research

The so-called “the problem of South China Sea”, refers to disputes anddivergences on the ownership of islands and reefs of South China Sea and Division ofinterest beside them. It is a very complicated and important issue among therelationship between China and coastal states along South China Sea, and its naturerefers to external encroachment of China’s sovereign interests of South China Sea. Itrelates to the problem of territorial sovereignty, sensitive issues of history, issues ofinternational law and international relations, and ought to have limited connectionwith the Sino-U.S. relations. However, the sovereignty of islands and reefs of SouthChina Sea which originally is unquestioned is not determined because of America’sactive involvement. Subsequently, the problem sprouts, occurs, burgeons, andinternationalizes because U.S. backs up besides petroleum resource and the concept ofInternational Law of the Sea. So U.S. which is not a nation to the problem becomesone of primary factors which China has to considerate during the process of solutionto the problem. With regarding to the close connection between the nature of theSino-U.S. relations and the development of the problem, the dissertation selects theperspective of the Sino-U.S. relations to explore the problem. Under the guidance ofMarxist historical materialism, using international relations theories, this dissertationhas sorted out the process of changes of the problem of South China Sea during thehistory of Sino-U.S. relations since1949on the basis of perspective of Sino-U.S.relations in such aspects of historical interpretation, situation analysis and policyresearch. The dissertation has managed to find out the regularity between the disputeof South China Sea and the Sino-U.S. relations to provide some enlightenment forprotecting our rights and interests of South China Sea by analysis effects from theSino-U.S. relations on the South China Sea issue.The dissertation is composed of five Chapters except the introduction andconclusion. The introduction is mainly composed of the review of domestic andoverseas researches on the issue, the structure and content of the dissertation, andresearch methods the dissertation etc, and is the concentration of the dissertation.Chapter1is the theoretical basis of the dissertation, which would discuss the originand nature of the South China Sea issue on the theoretical basis of the combination ofrealist theory, theory of neoliberal institutionalism and constructivist theory, and thenexpound the rationality of the research methods to study the issue from the perspective of the Sino-U.S. relations. After discusses the status of the problem in theSino-U.S. relations in history, it arguments that the nature of the Sino-U.S. relations,ASEAN’s attitudes and measures to the problem, China’s development and theimportance of oil are major elements that influence the status of the problem in theSino-U.S. relations, in terms of which it analyses the foregoing topic. The subsequentfour chapters are the main part of the dissertation, which would discuss the process ofthe seeds, appearance, development and internationalization according to theevolution of the Sino-U.S. relations, and focus on analyzing the effects from the SouthChina Sea policy between China and U.S. on the trend of the issue.Chapter2primarily investigates the effects from the Sino-U.S. relations offull-scale confrontation on the South China Sea. Firstly, it arguments the idea “inorder to contain China’s communism U.S purposefully fabricate the South China Seaissue which has already been solved” on the basis of detailed historical data andinternational relations theory. It narrates and analyses that U.S. directly violatesChina’s sovereignty of South China Sea, and supports the infringement of thePhilippines and other nations on the South China Sea. Secondly, it expoundsChina’s policy towards the South China Sea which includes policy statements andsystematical measures to defend its sovereignty this period, on the basis of which itevaluates that China’s tough and resolute policy to defend its sovereignty lays a goodfoundation on its subsequent recovered-measures in spite of severely adverseinternational and regional environment.Chapter3mainly studies the effects from the Sino-U.S. relations of strategiccooperation on the issue, which focuses on analyzing the limitation that U.S.supported China’s policy towards the South China Sea and the results. Firstly, itexplains the relation between the Xisha sea battle in1974and America’snon-intervention policy towards the sea, and argument that U.S. tacitly approvesChina’s limited recovered-measures by force in order to resist to the Soviet Union invirtue of China. However, America does not support China’s sovereignty to the sea,for whose limitation is to not hurt America’s relation with the Philippines and othernations. Secondly, it analyses China’s policy that comprises limited-force measuresand economic-development measures from its objective and backgrounds, on the baseof which it appraises that China’s policy with deep strategic awareness makes a greatsuccess. For one thing, China’s resolve and limited recovered-measures by force not only recover many islands with sending an explicit message to Vietnam and othernations, but also provides next policy with necessary material basis and ideologicalfoundation. For another, the economic-development policy associated closely withSoutheast Asia’s relation with China farthest avoids the South China Sea disputes withthe Philippines and other ASEAN countries, and makes preparations for futureChina’s maritime strategy.Chapter4discusses the effects from the Sino-U.S. relations of cooperation andcompetition on the issue, which basically analyzes the vicissitudes of America’spolicy towards the South China Sea under the backgrounds of China’s rise. Firstly, itdiscusses the effects from the global structure of one superpower and other powersand the rise of China on the problem; explains the gradual strengthening attention tothe problem from U.S. out of its control of the world to maintain hegemony and deterthe development of China; explores the essence of America’s neutral policy to the sea,the effect of the Sino-U.S. aircraft collision incident on the Sino-U.S. relations and theproblem, and America’s new policy to the sea after9·11event. Secondly, it argumentsChina’s policy of “co-development” possesses deep strategic attributes and economicquality, and is not temporary measures. The policy is regarded as a great successbecause it basically stabilizes the situation, and China becomes the principal power topromote East Asian cooperation with its own rise.Chapter5explores the effects from the new type of major powers relations ofSino-U.S. relations on the issue, which mainly probes into the effects from the policyof the South China Sea between China and U.S. on the situation of the South ChinaSea. Firstly, It mainly analyses the effect from the policy between China and U.S.under the backgrounds that China greatly narrows the disparity in power betweenthem. And it emphasizes to investigate into the agent, the effect, and the trend inAmerica’s policy of active intervention whose aim is to suppress China. Secondly, itdemonstrates that China’s policy of passiveness becomes the policy of initiativewhich includes institutionalization to defend rights and clear opposition to theintervention from the third party, and has research into the idea about core interest ofthe South China Sea and the mode of Huangyan Island under the framework of theSino-U.S. relations. At present China is making progress on the institutionalization todefend rights of the South China Sea, which indicates the trend clearly to solve theproblem. The last part is the conclusion of the dissertation. From the exploration of effectswhich more than60years of the evolution of Sino-US relations had on the issue, thedissertation makes conclusions such as follows.1.The dispute of South China Sea isalways America’s pawn which restricts China.2. U.S. is the major factor to influencethe solution to the problem.3. America’s policy towards the South China Sea isdetermined by the nature of the Sino-U.S. relations basically.4. The tendency whichChina expands the rights of recovery the South China Sea is constantly on the riseduring the complex and volatile process of the Sino-U.S. relations. In line with theconclusions, the dissertation believes that the solution to the problem principallydepends on the inclination and nature of the Sino-U.S. relations, and China mustexplore the means to solve the issue on the basis of the development of the Sino-U.S.relations.