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Strategic Vision vol. 8, no. 43 (November, 2019)
Synchronizing Strategy Taipei must be proactive in taking advantage of US Indo-Pacific Strategy Shao-cheng Sun
T
he US department of Defense (DoD) released the “Indo-Pacific Strategy Report” (IPSR) on June 1, 2019. The report outlines four major sections: the US vision and principles for the Indo-Pacific region, US regional strategic challenges, US national interests and defense strategy, and US influence to achieve and sustain its objectives. While the IPSR highlights major points in the development of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) concept, uncertainties remain concerning how well US policies will translate from rhetoric to reality.
The “Indo-Pacific” concept first emerged as a regional strategic framework in US politics in 2010 when then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton emphasized the importance of the Indo-Pacific basin to global trade. The approach was reinforced in 2016 with the release of Japan’s foreign policy strategy of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” to further promote the rule of law, freedom of navigation, and free trade. Now the US strategy combines military and economic aims to contain China’s military expansion. In 2019, the US DoD released IPSR that outlines the follow-
photo: ROC Presidential Office President Tsai Ing-wen greets a group of military officers from among Taiwan’s allies at the Presidential Office Building in Taipei.
Dr. Shao-cheng Sun is an assistant professor at The Citadel specializing in China’s security, East Asian affairs, and cross-strait relations. He can be reached for comment at ssun@citadel.edu