The Trump Administration's Indo-Pacific Strategy

The Trump administration has gradually developed the vision of “free and open India” into the “Indian Strategy”,which indicated that the United States should strengthen its influence in the Indo-Pacific region and maintain its dominance in the region.Since the beginning of the 21 st century,the changes in the international situation have become more complicated.The Indian Ocean region has become the "center of the world stage in the 21 st century" because of its important geographical position and huge economic development potential.At present,although the international pattern of "Only super Power and Multi-great Power" has undergone fundamental changes,with the rise of emerging powers such as China and India,the hegemonic status of the United States in the world is relatively weak.In order to maintain the hegemonic status of the United States,Trump put forward the political slogan of "America First" after taking office,pursued trade protectionism,withdrew from multilateral trade agreements,and reduced the cost of US defense abroad.This concept also affected its Asia-Pacific policy.Under the active promotion of countries such as Japan and Australia,the Trump administration has adjusted the Asia-Pacific policy from the "Asia-Pacific Rebalancing Strategy" of the Obama era to the "Indo-Pacific Strategy".The objectives of the strategy are as follows: politically maintain the "rule-based order" in the Indo-Taiwan region,economically promote the "fair reciprocity" of India-Taiwan trade,and strengthen and expand the India-Pacific alliance system in security.These strategic goals also show that the Trump administration hopes to enhance regional influence by strengthening ties with the Indo-Pacific region.At the same time,the Trump administration is also constantly implementing the promotion measures of the "Indo-Pacific strategy." In terms of politics,we will strengthen cooperation among allies,continuously expand partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region,maintain regional order under US leadership,and prevent the emergence of big powers that threaten US dominance.On the economic front,the withdrawal of multilateral trade agreements and the deepening of bilateral trade relations based on the principle of “fair and mutually beneficial” are intended to replace the multilateral trade framework through high-standard bilateral trade negotiations.On the military side,it strengthened the bilateral alliance relations between the Indo-Pacific region,actively promoted the establishment of the four-sided security mechanism of the United States,Japan,and Australia,and established a framework for safeguarding the security order in the Indo-Pacific region with the four-party security mechanism as the center.Strengthen military presence and arms sales in the Indo-Pacific region,expand military deployment,and conduct joint military exercises.Strengthen military superiority in this region.So far,the Trump administration's "Indo-Pacific strategy" has received positive responses from some countries.Its main connotation and overall objectives have been basically established,and relevant policies and implementation measures have begun to gradually advance.However,the Trump administration has not yet formulated clear and clear strategic measures,and the implementation of the "Indo-Pacific Strategy" still faces many challenges.First,as far as the United States is concerned,the "Trump phenomenon" has led to division within the Republican Party of the United States,forming a "dual polarization" of the political ecological structure.Domestic forces cannot be concentrated,while huge debt and fiscal deficits lead to insufficient US defense budget.It is impossible to establish a supportive economic foundation in the Indo-Pacific region.Secondly,as far as the alliances between the Indo-Pacific regions are concerned,although there are certain common interests in the Indo-Pacific region,the fundamental demands of the four countries of the United States,Japan,and Australia are not the same,and the “four-nation alliance” has also appeared to be abandoned.The traditional alliance dilemma with "being implicated" has a low level of strategic mutual trust.Finally,as far as the international environment is concerned,the United States,India and China are the main forces in the Indo-Taiwan region.The bilateral relations between the three countries also constrain the implementation of the "Indo-Pacific strategy".The United States and India have strategic expectations for their cooperation in the two countries.Poor relations make it difficult for the relations between the two countries to be as close as the US-Japan alliance.The Chinese factor is also a constraint to the future development of the "Indo-Pacific Strategy." The US-China relationship is more complicated than the US-India relationship.There is cooperation and competition in the relations between the two countries.How does the Trump administration handle the relationship with China in the process of implementing the "Indo-Pacific strategy" ? The United States is caught in the security predicament of a big country and an emerging power.These problems will affect or even constrain the implementation of the "Indo-Pacific strategy."...