Publication

This commentary explains that America's naval maneuvers and China's land reclamation activities in and around the Spratly Islands in 2015 have highlighted growing tensions and the risk of conflict in the South China Sea between Beijing and Washington. However, the author also argues that as China and the US seek to manage their differences the escalation of such incidents into war is an unlikely scenario as 1) it would be difficult to convince a weary American public to embark on another major overseas conflict; and 2) China's prime focus is on economic development.