The PLA at Home and Abroad - Strategic Studies Institute - U.S. Army

183. Senior Captain Xu Qi, PLAN, “Maritime Geostrategy and
the Development of the Chinese Navy in the Early 21st Century,”
China Military Science, Vol. 17, No. 4, 2004, pp. 75-81. For related
Western arguments, see Robert Kaplan, “Center Stage for the 21st
Century: Power Plays in the Indian Ocean” Foreign Affairs, Vol. 88,
No. 2, March-April 2009, pp. 16-23; Thomas Culora and Andrew
Erickson, “Arms and Influence at Sea,” letter to editor, Foreign Affairs,
Vol. 88, No. 4, July/August 2009, p. 164.
184. Wang Nannan, ed., “Expert Says China’s Advancement
toward the Indian Ocean Concerns National Interests and Gives
No Cause for Criticism,” Xinhua, June 10, 2008, available from
news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2008-06/10/content_8338128.htm.
185. Sun Ruibo, ed., “The U.S. Military Strengthens Forces on
Guam—For What Purpose?” Xinhua, July 4, 2008, available from
news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2008-07/04/content_8489422.htm.
186. Huang Li, pp. 214.
187. Only the permanent stationing of military troops in another
country constitutes a base. A facility may be smaller, have
a lower profile—particularly if it is manned primarily by locals,
and be more focused on support activities. There is also the issue
of who “owns” the facility. For example, Al Udeid Air Base in
Qatar is a Qatari Air Force Base. However, while there are probably
only 100 or so Qatari personnel stationed there, the facility
hosts over 10,000 U.S. personnel but technically it is not a U.S.
base. The author thanks M. Taylor Fravel and Daniel Kostecka for
these points.
188. Bases do not necessarily constitute a requirement for
a major military presence or a desire to project a large regional
footprint. France has four naval/air bases in the Indian Ocean: in
Djioubti, Reunion, Mayotte, and the United Arab Emirates, but
Paris is not accused of attempting to dominate the region.
189. In Mauritius, for example, Chinese media sources report,
“China’s first overseas special economic zone” has been established.
Known officially as the Tianli Economic and Trade Cooperation
Zone, the state-guided project could capitalize on the
historically warm relations between the two nations. Lei Dongrui,
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