Chinese and Indian Strategic Behavior: Growing Power and Alarm

by George J. Gilboy, Eric Heginbotham

Overview

This book offers an empirical comparison of Chinese and Indian international strategic behavior. It is the first study of its kind, filling an important gap in the literature on rising Indian and Chinese power and American interests in Asia. The book creates a framework for the systematic and objective assessment of Chinese and Indian strategic behavior in four areas: (1) strategic culture; (2) foreign policy and use of force; (3) military modernization (including defense spending, military doctrine, and force modernization); and (4) economic strategies (including international trade and energy competition). The utility of democratic peace theory in predicting Chinese and Indian behavior is also examined. The findings challenge many assumptions underpinning western expectations of China and India.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781107020054
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	03/12/2012
Pages:	376
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

George J. Gilboy is the Chief Representative and General Manager, China, for Woodside Energy Ltd. Concurrently, he is a Senior Fellow at the Center for International Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr Gilboy was previously the head of Strategy and Planning for Shell Gas & Power in China. Prior to joining Shell, he established the China business for Cambridge Energy Research Associates. His publications have appeared in Foreign Affairs, The Washington Quarterly, The National Interest, Economic Research (Chinese) and Twenty-First Century Business Review (Chinese). He speaks and reads Chinese and has been living and working in China for the last eighteen years. He received his PhD in Political Science from MIT.

Eric Heginbotham is a Senior Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation and specializes in East Asian political and security affairs. He was formerly a Senior Fellow of Asian Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. He has published in Foreign Affairs, International Security, Current History, Military Review, and a number of edited volumes. He has also co-authored several RAND monographs and is the co-editor of China and the Developing World. He served as a Military Intelligence Officer in the U.S. Army Reserve for fourteen years, spent more than ten years in Asia and speaks and reads Chinese and Japanese. He received his PhD in Political Science from the MIT.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction; 2. Strategic culture: unique paths to veiled realpolitik; 3. Foreign policy, use of force, and border settlements; 4. Military modernization: defense spending; 5. Military doctrine: towards emphasis on offensive action; 6. Military force modernization and power projection; 7. Economic strategic behavior: trade and energy; 8. India, China, and democratic peace theory; 9. Meeting the dual challenge: a U.S. strategy for China and India.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

'This fascinating book provides a needed corrective to the all-too-common view in Washington that China is simply a threat and India a reliable ally. Gilboy and Heginbotham show that both states pose security challenges, albeit of different kinds. A realistic understanding of Chinese and Indian international strategic behavior has to be the starting point for a wise U.S. policy towards Asia.' Robert J. Art, Brandeis University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology

'At last we have a rigorous and systematic comparison of modern Chinese and Indian defense and security policies and structures. As such, it is an invaluable resource for understanding Asia's strategic destiny.' Stephen P. Cohen, Brookings Institution

'This is a well-written, thoroughly researched, and erudite comparison of Indian and Chinese security doctrine and practice. The book shows that the growing view in the United States of China as an implacable adversary and India as a natural ally is simplistic and naive. One can only hope that U.S. policy makers are willing to make the effort to read through this very enlightening book.' Alistair Ian Johnston, Harvard University

'Chinese and Indian Strategic Behavior is a seminal comparative treatment of the international behavior of Asia's rising powers, China and India, and their implications for the United States. This book provides a solid foundation for objective assessment of the strategic role to be played by Beijing and New Delhi.' Admiral Timothy J. Keating, Former Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Pacific Command

'This systematic and well-researched analysis makes a major contribution to American foreign policy discourse, bringing an insightful comparative perspective to bear in the perennial U.S. controversy about China's rise and at the same time providing a welcome stimulus to the debate the United States should have about India's growing power.' Alice Lyman Miller, Stanford University

'George Gilboy and Eric Heginbotham's excellent book introduces a fresh breeze of clear thinking and the illumination of careful factual research … Their work is essential reading for anyone who wants a serious understanding of China's international strategy, military doctrine and capacity, and potential impact on the global power balance.' Arthur Kroeber, China Economic Quarterly

Editorial Reviews

"Gilboy and Heginbotham deliver a thoroughly researched and compelling comparison of Chinese and Indian strategic behaviour, and also provide another 'way ahead for US policy' approach." - Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies

From the Publisher