Publication

This paper discusses some of the political and diplomatic tools that the US and its allies and partners could use to impose costs on states that engage in "bad behavior" in maritime Asia. The author argues that existing legal and multilateral mechanisms are insufficient to constrain assertive behavior by rising powers in the region, particularly China. He therefore recommends that the US and other regional powers – including Australia, Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam – explore the possibility of formalizing a Code of Practice (CoP) to regulate what constitutes appropriate behavior for disputes in both the East and South China Seas.