CHINA AND THE SPRATLY ISLANDS

The sharp turn to the Far East, often referred to as the “pivot”, has brought to light China’s secretive attempts to gain ownership of the straits of the South China Sea, mainly by staking claim of several of the Spratly Islands. A central question is “what role do the Spratly Islands play in China's attempts to dominate the South China Sea, more specifically in the One Belt One Road initiative?” The argument that the Spratly Islands are significant is a logical one: as the Spratly Islands are located in the South China Sea, which sees trade that passes through it, specifically the oil, tripling the amount that passes through the Suez Canal, and almost fifteen times the amount that passes through the Panama Canal, it would follow that in order for China to increase its economic (both through trade, and natural resources), diplomatic (the One Belt One Road initiative), and military influence throughout the South China Sea, it would need to gain and maintain dominance in the region. Applying a classical geopolitical approach, along with ancient Chinese teachings of strategy, understanding how and why China has taken certain steps towards its goal of dominance is made clearer. The findings point to the geographic location of the Spratly Islands, because of China’s fear of encirclement, as the biggest reason why the Spratly’s are so significant. The aim was to convey clear ways that the Spratly Islands have already played a major role in China’s global expansion