China's attempts to comprehensively overhaul and modernise its armed forces, and its emphasis on access to modern technology indicate the Chinese leadership determination to build an all-round military capability to fight well beyond its immediate periphery. Coercion, and if that fails, resorting to use of military force have been the logical and natural steps in China's strategy. This marked propensity to use force makes one take note of China's fast burgeoning military capabilities. The rapid modernisation process of China's military would permit it to extend its influence and power well beyond its immediate proximity. This development has serious implications for India's security. But to exaggerate the "Chinese threat" is counter-productive, lest it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. While the PRC would like the world to respect it even if out of fear or awe, it is axiomatic that India guard itself against an overestimation of the threat while assessing its potential. The book attempts to search for ways to improve an understanding of China's rapidly rising power status in international politics and its possible implications for India's security.

China’s emergence as a global economic superpower, and as a major regional military power in Asia and the Pacific, has had a major impact on its relations with the United States and its neighbors. China was the driving factor in the new strategy the United States announced in 2012 that called for a “rebalance” of U.S. forces to the Asia-Pacific region. At the same time, China’s actions on its borders, in the East China Sea, and in the South China Sea have shown that it is steadily expanding its geopolitical role in the Pacific and having a steadily increasing impact on the strategy and military developments in other Asian powers.

Tells the story of the growing Chinese Navy - The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) - and its expanding capabilities, evolving roles and military implications for the USA. Divided into four thematic sections, this special collection of essays surveys and analyzes the most important aspects of China's navel modernization.

The “ASEAN Way” is based on the principle of consensus; any individual member state effectively has a veto over any proposal with which it disagrees. Dividing ASEAN and Conquering the South China Sea analyzes how China uses its influence to divide ASEAN countries in order to prevent them from acting collectively to resolve their territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea. Using comparative case studies of China’s relations with Cambodia, the Philippines, and Myanmar, O’Neill argues that the regime type in the country with which China is interacting plays an important role in enhancing or constraining China’s ability to influence the governments of developing states within ASEAN and globally. Authoritarian institutions facilitate Chinese influence while democratic institutions inhibit that influence. O’Neill argues that as long as ASEAN includes developing, authoritarian regimes, and given that the United States and other global powers are unlikely to risk any serious conflict over each push of China’s maritime boundaries, little by little, China will assert its sovereignty over the South China Sea. Nevertheless, noting the long-term, global trend of states democratizing, he contends that if China chooses to engage in more sophisticated bilateral politics, such as providing incentives to a broader range of interest groups in democratic states, then China will have more success in projecting its power globally. “Professor O’Neill’s well-crafted and theoretically sound assessment of China successfully dividing ASEAN in pursuit of claims in the South China Sea also shows important variations in China’s regional influence dependent notably on the degree of authoritarianism and democracy in Southeast Asian governments.”—Robert Sutter, professor of practice of international affairs, George Washington University “There are plenty of books looking at various aspects of the South China Sea issue, but I am not aware of any that duplicates the approach of this book. It is a useful addition to our understanding, both of the specific issue and of the broader theoretical implications which it raises.”—Richard Rigby, professor and executive director, China Institute, the Australian National University

Chinese future war and future air war theorists consider offensive-mindedness and power projection an absolute necessity for survival in a changing world environment. Although China's theories for future warfare are well beyond the technological grasp of the current day PLAAF, the Chinese suggest ideas or theories represent the.

In late 2015, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) initiated reforms that have brought dramatic changes to its structure, model of warfighting, and organizational culture, including the creation of a Strategic Support Force (SSF) that centralizes most PLA space, cyber, electronic, and psychological warfare capabilities. The reforms come at an inflection point as the PLA seeks to pivot from land-based territorial defense to extended power projection to protect Chinese interests in the "strategic frontiers" of space, cyberspace, and the far seas. Understanding the new strategic roles of the SSF is essential to understanding how the PLA plans to fight and win informationized wars and how it will conduct information operations.