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China Has a Massive Geographic Problem That Drives Its Foreign Policy
A lingering maritime issue with no easy solutions
The terms geopolitics and geopolitical get thrown around an awful lot by people who do not know what the terms actually mean. Many people simply think that throwing “geo” in front of important words makes them sound grander. But geopolitics is a specific term that links politics and geography. Geopolitics is simply politics that are inextricably linked to geography. Everyone loves politics, but few people feel as passionately about geography.
China is the third-largest country in the world by total area trailing only Canada and Russia. Despite China’s massive size, the country has a coastline problem that emerged following the end of World War II. According to information provided by Worldshipping.org, China has seven of the top ten largest container ports in the world. That is great for international trade and the quality of the ports far outstrips that of almost every other country in the world.
The problem lies with the geography of the surrounding oceans. China is ringed by a series of island chains that clog up the waterways and prevent the Chinese navy from having a clean route to open waters. All of the islands that surround China are directly, or indirectly, controlled and defended by the United States of America and its allies.
This problem was not vexing while China was an isolated communist nation. But those days are over. Now that China is a global superpower and economic titan the fact that it cannot control its own destiny at sea is becoming more alarming to Chinese leaders. This problem is starting to affect China’s foreign policy in massive ways including how it treats Taiwan and its goals in the Solomon Islands.
