String of Pearls (China)
Encyclopedia
The String of Pearls refers to the Chinese
sea lines of communication
which extend to Port Sudan
. The sea lines run through the strategic choke points Strait of Mandab, Strait of Malacca
, Strait of Hormuz
and Strait of Lombok as well as other strategic naval interest such as Pakistan
, Sri Lanka
, Bangladesh
, Maldives
and Somalia
. The term was used in an internal United States Department of Defense
report titled "Energy Futures in Asia".
Chinese President Hu Jintao has stated that the goal of the PRC's naval strategy is a “harmonious ocean” and "China would never seek hegemony, nor would it turn to military expansion or arms races with other nations". Some Indians fear that the string of pearls may put India at a military disadvantage, and that India's lack of a grand strategy
lets China develop relationships with the other countries in the region.
from Hong Kong to Port Sudan have become a source of conflict with respect to China's
future energy security. China is the world's second largest oil consumer and the third largest oil importer. China imports 15% of its oil from West Africa, is the largest consumer of Sudanese oil, and has signed long term contracts to develop Iranian oil fields.
With a wave of pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia
in late 2008, the ongoing war in Darfur
and the continued oppression by the Robert Mugabe
regime in Zimbabwe
, Chinese foreign policy has now shifted toward a more direct approach to dealing with such hostilities.
, the United States
, United Kingdom
and other NATO countries, Russia
and China
have begun vying for control of the lucrative oil and gas fields of Central Asia. The rugged inaccessible terrain of Central Asia and the presence of terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda
present obstacles to the transportation of oil and natural gas by pipeline. After the events of 9/11 the region has seen an increase in the number of United States military personnel especially in Afghanistan, and the recent invasion of Georgia
by Russia has placed the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline in jeopardy.
In order to hedge against the growing militarization of Central Asia, China has begun construction on a new massive deep-water port in Gwadar, Pakistan which is expected to help China gain a strategic foothold for naval operations in the Indian Ocean
and Persian Gulf
. The port will also act as the downstream hub for pipelines linking to Central Asian natural gas fields through Afghanistan.
The Chinese completed construction on the new Kazakhstan-China oil pipeline
in 2009. The pipeline runs from the Chinese-Kazakh border to the North Caspian Sea. This final extension will allow the pipeline to be filled with oil from the giant Tengiz
oil field.
; Gwadar
, Pakistan; Chittagong
, Bangladesh; Sittwe
, Burma; Lamu
, Kenya; and Hambantota
, Sri Lanka.
Dean Cheng of the Heritage Foundation
has said that the United States will need to partner with India to counter China's influence in the Indian Ocean.
In a Summer 2011 article for the academic journal Asian Security, Nilanthi Samaranayake of CNA
has undertaken a first-time, systematic analysis of the trends in Sri Lanka’s economic, military, and diplomatic relations with China. The port in Hambantota, Sri Lanka is discussed.
Daniel Kostecka has argued that the Indian Ocean bases are purely commercial because they lack any military infrastructure and are indefensible in wartime.
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
sea lines of communication
Sea lines of communication
Sea lines of communication is a term describing the primary maritime routes between ports, used for trade, logistics and naval forces...
which extend to Port Sudan
Port Sudan
Port Sudan is the capital of Red Sea State, Sudan; it has 489,725 residents . Located on the Red Sea, it is the Republic of Sudan's main port city.-History:...
. The sea lines run through the strategic choke points Strait of Mandab, Strait of Malacca
Strait of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow, stretch of water between the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian island of Sumatra. It is named after the Malacca Sultanate that ruled over the archipelago between 1414 to 1511.-Extent:...
, Strait of Hormuz
Strait of Hormuz
The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow, strategically important waterway between the Gulf of Oman in the southeast and the Persian Gulf. On the north coast is Iran and on the south coast is the United Arab Emirates and Musandam, an exclave of Oman....
and Strait of Lombok as well as other strategic naval interest such as Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Maldives
Maldives
The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
and Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
. The term was used in an internal United States Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
report titled "Energy Futures in Asia".
Chinese President Hu Jintao has stated that the goal of the PRC's naval strategy is a “harmonious ocean” and "China would never seek hegemony, nor would it turn to military expansion or arms races with other nations". Some Indians fear that the string of pearls may put India at a military disadvantage, and that India's lack of a grand strategy
Grand strategy
Grand strategy comprises the "purposeful employment of all instruments of power available to a security community". Military historian B. H. Liddell Hart says about grand strategy:...
lets China develop relationships with the other countries in the region.
Energy security
The sea lines of communicationSea lines of communication
Sea lines of communication is a term describing the primary maritime routes between ports, used for trade, logistics and naval forces...
from Hong Kong to Port Sudan have become a source of conflict with respect to China's
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
future energy security. China is the world's second largest oil consumer and the third largest oil importer. China imports 15% of its oil from West Africa, is the largest consumer of Sudanese oil, and has signed long term contracts to develop Iranian oil fields.
With a wave of pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
in late 2008, the ongoing war in Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
and the continued oppression by the Robert Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...
regime in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
, Chinese foreign policy has now shifted toward a more direct approach to dealing with such hostilities.
South China Sea
David Eshel counts the Chinese naval facilities on Hainan Island as the first pearl on the chain.- Woody Island, South China SeaWoody Island, South China SeaWoody Island, also known as Yongxing Island , is one of the major islands of Paracel Islands in South China Sea. It is administrated by the People's Republic of China through the Yongxingdao Neighborhood Committee. It has no indigenous inhabitants, although there are People's Liberation Army...
Central Asian conflict
In what has been dubbed The New Great GameThe new great game
The New Great Game is a term used to describe the conceptualization of modern geopolitics in Central Eurasia as a competition between the United States, the United Kingdom and other NATO countries against Russia, the People's Republic of China and other Shanghai Cooperation Organisation countries...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and other NATO countries, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
have begun vying for control of the lucrative oil and gas fields of Central Asia. The rugged inaccessible terrain of Central Asia and the presence of terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
present obstacles to the transportation of oil and natural gas by pipeline. After the events of 9/11 the region has seen an increase in the number of United States military personnel especially in Afghanistan, and the recent invasion of Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
by Russia has placed the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline in jeopardy.
In order to hedge against the growing militarization of Central Asia, China has begun construction on a new massive deep-water port in Gwadar, Pakistan which is expected to help China gain a strategic foothold for naval operations in the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
. The port will also act as the downstream hub for pipelines linking to Central Asian natural gas fields through Afghanistan.
The Chinese completed construction on the new Kazakhstan-China oil pipeline
Kazakhstan-China oil pipeline
The Kazakhstan–China oil pipeline is China's first direct oil import pipeline allowing oil import from Central Asia. It runs from Kazakhstan's Caspian shore to Xinjiang in China. The pipeline is owned by the China National Petroleum Corporation and the Kazakh oil company KazMunayGas.-History:The...
in 2009. The pipeline runs from the Chinese-Kazakh border to the North Caspian Sea. This final extension will allow the pipeline to be filled with oil from the giant Tengiz
Tengiz Field
Tengiz field is an oil and gas field located in northwestern Kazakhstan's low-lying wetlands along the northeast shores of the Caspian Sea...
oil field.
Indian Ocean
Ports in Marao, MaldivesMaldives
The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
; Gwadar
Gwadar
Gwadar also known as Godar is a developing port city on the southwestern Arabian Sea coast of Pakistan. It is the district headquarters of Gwadar District in Balochistan province and has a population of approximately 50,000.Gwadar is strategically located at the apex of the Arabian Sea and at the...
, Pakistan; Chittagong
Chittagong
Chittagong ) is a city in southeastern Bangladesh and the capital of an eponymous district and division. Built on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, the city is home to Bangladesh's busiest seaport and has a population of over 4.5 million, making it the second largest city in the country.A trading...
, Bangladesh; Sittwe
Sittwe
-Economy:In February 2007, India announced a plan to develop the port, which would enable ocean access from Indian Northeastern states, so called "Seven sisters", like Mizoram, via the Kaladan River....
, Burma; Lamu
Lamu
-Threats to Lamu:In a 2010 report titled Saving Our Vanishing Heritage, Global Heritage Fund identified Lamu as one of 12 worldwide sites most "On the Verge" of irreparable loss and damage, citing insufficient management and development pressure as primary causes.- See also :* Juma and the Magic...
, Kenya; and Hambantota
Hambantota
Hambantota is a coastal city in the south of Sri Lanka. It is the capital of the Hambantota District...
, Sri Lanka.
Dean Cheng of the Heritage Foundation
Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...
has said that the United States will need to partner with India to counter China's influence in the Indian Ocean.
In a Summer 2011 article for the academic journal Asian Security, Nilanthi Samaranayake of CNA
Center for Naval Analyses
CNA's Center for Naval Analyses is a federally funded research and development center for the Navy and the Marine Corps. It also provides research and analysis services to other military and government agencies to help improve the efficiency and effectiveness of U.S...
has undertaken a first-time, systematic analysis of the trends in Sri Lanka’s economic, military, and diplomatic relations with China. The port in Hambantota, Sri Lanka is discussed.
Daniel Kostecka has argued that the Indian Ocean bases are purely commercial because they lack any military infrastructure and are indefensible in wartime.