America Pacific Century Critique - Essay Example

America’s Pacific Century Hillary Clinton’s article, America’s Pacific Century, has attracted a wide variety of views since its publication. The article to lays out strategies that the Obama administration seeks to employ as a measure to position the United States at the center of the ongoing political and economic transformations in Asia. Critiques and opinion columns have been done on the article with some supporting the ideas in the article while others rubbish the proposed strategies. It remains to be seen whether the proposed strategies will work but the bottom line is that the US does not want to be left out of the Asian ‘revolution’. All in all, whether the US will be at the center of the action is very much dependent on strategy. The basic assumption when it comes to national perspectives is that each and every state will have its interests that are to be pursued. Colonel Arthur Lykke proposes a three element approach when formulating a strategy (Bartholomees 3). This can be summarized as the end, ways and means approach. Strategy serves to control its surrounding instead of reacting to it. It enables the use of power in either a persuasive or coercive manner to achieve set goals. Based on the USAWC Strategy Formulation Framework, Clinton seems to be on the right track. The ideas articulated in the article are in line with the core national interests of the nation (Bartholomees 399) namely; security, stability, promotion of values and economic wellness. Clinton recognizes the need to invest the US resources wisely over the next ten years as this will have a great bearing the future of the nation as a world power (Clinton 1). She clearly states the strategic vision of the Obama administration as being guided by three principles. These are; maintaining political consensus, quickly adapting into the newly formed alliances and guaranteeing defense for new allies. The importance of the region is greatly emphasized. Clinton first points out that the US needs to reposition and not withdraw from the region as is proposed by some in the political scene. She highlights the market potential in Asia for American businesses as one of the key reasons to reposition. She also reiterates that the key to stability and security at home is the stability of areas abroad. The open markets in Asia are seen as an opportunity to invest, conduct trade and access latest technologies. These markets are also portrayed as being important to recovery of the US economy. Given the economic crisis that the nation went through a while back, it would be unwise not to seize the available opportunity for a speedy recovery. Clinton advocates for a symbiotic relationship between Asia and the US. This proposal underlies the idea that both the US and Asia-Pacific need each other in order to progress well to the future. The article also distinctively identifies the national interests of the country. The most important is the issue of security. Several ways have been proposed on how to implement the strategy. Clinton first calls for application of a forward deployed diplomacy. In this case diplomatic assets are used to achieve partnership. Six key aspects have been forwarded as the basis for this approach. They are; the strengthening of security alliances; intensifying the work relationships with the emerging powers, this includes China; interacting with multilateral organizations in the region; expansion of investment and trading activities; establishing military presence; and championing for democracy and application of human rights in partner countries. There are several alliance treaties that exist with Countries such as Japan, Australia, Thailand, South Korea and the Philippines. The countries have been identified as a fulcrum to the strategies that the US plans to apply in the Asia-Pacific region. Though the treaties have proven to be beneficial to the US, Clinton calls for the update of the treaties to make them more relevant to the current times. The alliance with Japan is particularly seen to be very important. The Japanese government even contributes to the US an amount of five billion dollars to maintain its military forces that are present in Japan (Clinton 3). Also, the two countries conduct joint surveillance and intelligence for security purposes. It is worthwhile to note that this is in the national interests of the US as security is the single most important factor for the well being of a country. The article also states other partnerships with other countries that deal with security issues such as the training of Filipino counterterrorism forces by the US (Clinton 3). Clinton also touches on the prominent issue of US China relations. She proposes a careful approach when dealing with China. Clinton talks of the misperceptions that both the US and China have of each other. She is keen assure readers that the US does not share in those misperceptions. She states that both countries can gain more from cooperation than from conflict. She advocates for open discussion of any differences to promote cooperation and understanding of each other. The growth of China is given focus. Clinton touches on how China has expanded and modernized its military. She notes that the US has sought clarity on the intentions of the expansion. Economically, she advocates for a partnership between the two countries. The article also outlines the means that will be used to achieve the set goals. The use of bilateral and multilateral relationships has been fronted as one of the ways to implement the strategies. President Obama is set to participate in the East Asia Summit for the first time this November (Clinton 5). This move is deemed necessary so as to establish a strong working relationship with these countries. The US has also helped to formulate solutions to disputes that were common in the South China waters so as to facilitate trade. Strong diplomatic ties are highlighted as another means of ensuring prosperity. Trade deals such as the one made with South Korea on the reduction of tariffs will be of great when it comes to exportation of goods to South Korea (Clinton 5). Similar deals are advocated for with other countries. As the United States tries to achieve its goals, several challenges and risks lie on its way. To start with, the fast growth of China is perceived by some people as a threat to the US. Clinton says that China needs to be delicately handled as it continues to grow. There is also a challenge when it comes to getting potential partners especially those of oppressive regimes to conduct reforms so as to work with them (Cartalluci 2). The concept of pivoting military forces in Asia does not seem to go well with so countries such as China. This may strain the delicate relationship that the US is trying to establish with China .There is also the domestic resistance to this strategy by political figures (Clinton 1). Many people seem to believe that it’s time for America to focus on domestic priorities. This may affect the rate at which the strategy is implemented and comes into effect. In general, Clinton’s article covers the necessary bases of a good strategy. The arguments put forward in the article are valid. Although not every person may agree with the views articulated in the article, there is a strong argument put forward to support the need for America to reposition herself. If what the article proposes was implemented then great benefit will come from it. There is a lot to gain If America places herself at the center of the action in Asia. Works Cited Clinton, Hillary. “America’s Pacific Century.” The America Issue. Foreign Policy Mag., 8 Nov 2011. Web. 17 Nov 2011. Bartholomees, J Boone. Theory of War and Strategy. Strategic Studies Institute, July 2010. Web. 17 Nov 2011. Cartalucci, Tony. “Hillary Clinton and the New American (Pacific) Century.” The Intel Hub. The Intel Hub, 16 Nov.2011. Web. 17 Nov 2011. Read More