Japan Institute for National Fundamentals
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Speaking out

Yasushi Tomiyama

【#329】Obama Failing to Take Next Action against China

Yasushi Tomiyama ／ 2015.10.01 (Thu)


September 28, 2015

　　　　　The U.S.-China summit at the White House on September 24-25 indicated that the Obama administration has only a limited range of actions to take in the immediate future against China that has been challenging the U.S.-led world order, occasionally ignoring international rules.

Cybertheft sanctions put off
　　　　　On cybertheft, one of the biggest topics at the summit, the United States and China agreed not to conduct or support cyberattacks that steal corporate secrets for commercial advantage. They also agreed to cooperate in investigating cybercrimes.
　　　　　But the anti-cyberattack agreement covers only stealing corporate secrets for economic benefit, failing to cover cyberattacks such as recent leaks of personal data of U.S. federal government officials in which China's involvement has been suspected.
　　　　　The agreement also put off sanctions the Obama administration had been considering against Chinese companies benefiting from cybertheft. While the effectiveness of the U.S.-China agreement is questioned, the agreement could only prevent the United States from taking counteractions.
　　　　　As for the other major topic of China's unilateral land reclamation and military facility construction at disputed areas in the South China Sea, Chinese President Xi Jinping said at a joint press conference with President Barack Obama after the talks: "China does not intend to pursue militarization." The remark was doubted as it came just after a military journal report that China had completed a 3,000-meter runway on Fiery Cross Reef of the Spratly Islands, allowing Chinese aircraft to conduct marine patrol in the South China Sea.
　　　　　But President Obama made no particular response to the Xi remark. As Obama vowed to "watch carefully" whether progress would be made in fighting against cyberattacks, he should have responded to the Xi remark by warning that the United States would carefully watch whether China would demilitarize artificial islands.

China attempting to conceal "core interests"?
　　　　　President Xi again emphasized his plan to develop China-U.S. relationship into "the new model of major-country relations.” Japan should remain alert to the idea that could allow the United States and China to dominate international politics. Since it became clear that China has incorporated mutual respect of “core interests” such as its territorial claims in the South China Sea into the new model of major-country relations, the Obama administration has remained cautious of accepting the new model.
　　　　　During his U.S. visit this time, however, President Xi refrained from using at least in public the phrase of “core interests” that the United States does not like. Instead, in what seemed to be a delicate shift, he called for mutual accommodation of each other's “interests" in his address in Seattle on September 22.
　　　　　Japan must closely watch future U.S. and Chinese developments while keeping in mind that some U.S. experts expressed their opinion that the U.S. could accept the new model of major-country relations unless China refers to core interests (e.g., The Catch-22 in U.S.-Chinese Relations, Snapshot, February 22, 2015).

Yasushi Tomiyama is Senior Fellow and Planning Committee Member at the Japan Institute for National Fundamentals.