Produced and Published by Observer Research Foundation 1 Vol. II ...
Produced and Published by Observer Research Foundation 1 Vol. II ...
Produced and Published by Observer Research Foundation 1 Vol. II ...
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there would be an accommodation<br />
made in the context of<br />
international norms, st<strong>and</strong>ards,<br />
rules <strong>and</strong> laws with China.<br />
Admiral Swift rejected the notion<br />
that the world is entering into<br />
another cold war. The Cold War<br />
between the US <strong>and</strong> the erstwhile<br />
Soviet Union was a result of the<br />
great doubt on both sides about<br />
each other’s strength that led to<br />
great uncertainty around the world<br />
about which was more powerful<br />
<strong>and</strong> consequently who would side<br />
with who became a matter of<br />
concern globally, he explained.<br />
That is not the case where the<br />
world is today, he said. Because of<br />
its economic weight, China is a<br />
global power from a policy<br />
perspective, but from a military<br />
perspective, it is a regional power,<br />
he observed. Hence, the<br />
perspective of power is different in<br />
the Cold War context, he added.<br />
The Unpredictable North Korea<br />
Admiral Swift observed that North<br />
Korea is the primary concern today<br />
because it is difficult to predict<br />
exactly what the government in<br />
North Korea is striving for. He<br />
noted that Kim Jong-un’s recent<br />
success of getting a satellite in the<br />
space followed <strong>by</strong> a nuclear test<br />
<strong>and</strong> now the latest ratcheting up of<br />
tensions are of great concern.<br />
Even as Pyongyang is said to be<br />
seeking a dialogue with the United<br />
States, its method of threatening to<br />
generate a discussion is not<br />
acceptable, he pointed out. Admiral<br />
Swift noted that the United States<br />
takes the threat seriously <strong>and</strong> it has<br />
been taking measures to reduce the<br />
risk. He said the US is in a dialogue<br />
with other countries in the region<br />
that are equally concerned about<br />
how destabilizing an open conflict<br />
would create <strong>and</strong> the fact that it<br />
would be the first order<br />
consequences, the second <strong>and</strong> third<br />
order consequences from an<br />
economic perspective. He observed<br />
that the capabilities that some<br />
attribute to North Korea are<br />
somewhat exaggerated, even<br />
though the risk is a serious one.<br />
The danger is the unpredictability<br />
<strong>and</strong> without underst<strong>and</strong>ing the goal<br />
of North Korea, it is difficult to<br />
develop a policy approach that<br />
would deescalate the situation, he<br />
suggested.<br />
Admiral Swift said that all the<br />
rhetoric coming out of North<br />
Korea may be something that is a<br />
cover for something smaller that<br />
might occur in the background <strong>and</strong><br />
needs to pay attention to, he said.<br />
He noted that North Korea would<br />
not utilize international norms,<br />
st<strong>and</strong>ards, rules <strong>and</strong> laws to resolve<br />
disputes, given that it is not even<br />
approachable in a dialogue.<br />
South China Sea <strong>and</strong> the<br />
Senkakus/Diaoyu Isl<strong>and</strong>s<br />
Admiral Swift noted that China<br />
may underst<strong>and</strong> the necessity of<br />
turning to international arbitration<br />
to resolve the territorial issues, if<br />
not value the global norms. With<br />
respect to the Philippines bringing<br />
its claim in Scarborough Reef to<br />
international arbitration, he said,<br />
the Chinese rejection would not<br />
matter as the issue would be<br />
resolved <strong>by</strong> the international<br />
tribunal with or without China’s<br />
participation. He observed that<br />
China’s position has been clear all<br />
along in rejecting multilateral<br />
resolution, but its bilateral<br />
approach to resolving differences is<br />
problematic, he added.<br />
He observed that taking the issue<br />
to an international court empowers<br />
other countries in the region <strong>and</strong><br />
the move itself is a victory, even as<br />
China rejects the outcome. Admiral<br />
Swift made an interesting<br />
observation about what if China<br />
were to win the case in absentia.<br />
This would raise the dilemma<br />
whether it would embrace<br />
international arbitration or not. He<br />
also pointed out that Vietnam may<br />
be interested in pursuing the<br />
Philippines’ way.<br />
On the Senkaku issue, Admiral<br />
Swift noted that Japan is unwilling<br />
to acknowledge that there is a<br />
dispute because from the Japanese<br />
perspective the acknowledgment of<br />
the dispute diminishes the power<br />
of their opposition. He also noted<br />
that China thought that the same<br />
model that proved successful with<br />
Scarborough Reef would gain the<br />
same level of success with the<br />
Senkakus.<br />
Admiral Swift said Taiwan does not<br />
support the Chinese position on<br />
the disputed isl<strong>and</strong>. The Taiwanese<br />
position is that the Chinese claim is<br />
not valid <strong>and</strong> that their claim to the<br />
isl<strong>and</strong> is valid, he added. The great<br />
risk is that if there is no arbitration<br />
<strong>and</strong> dialogue to resolve these<br />
issues, the unfortunate experience<br />
globally is, people turn to force, he<br />
pointed out.<br />
On Japan’s move towards relaxing<br />
some of their laws to govern their<br />
activities of self-defence, Admiral<br />
Swift observed that Tokyo appears<br />
<strong>Produced</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Published</strong> <strong>by</strong> <strong>Observer</strong> <strong>Research</strong> <strong>Foundation</strong><br />
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