중국의 지리적 위치 (포위된 중국)

Maps that shift perspective can be disorienting, but they are meant to be.
Our minds get so used to seeing the world in one way that a different view can feel alien.
But that is even more reason to push through the discomfort.
The map above attempts to do that by looking at the Pacific from Beijing’s perspective.

China's moves in the South China Sea have received a great deal of attention.
In a Jan. 12 confirmation hearing with Congress, nominee for US Secretary of Defense James Mattish
identified Chinese aggressiveness as one of the major reasons
he believes the world order is under its biggest assault since World War II.
But we believe the Chinese threat is overstated. This map helps explain why.

China’s access to the Pacific is limited by two obstacles.
The first is the small island chains in the South and East China Seas.
When we look at this map, China’s motive in asserting control over these large rocks and molehills becomes clear.
If China cannot control these islands and shoals, they can be used against China in a military conflict.
(If there were small island chains off the US coast in the Pacific or the Atlantic, US strategy might look like China’s.)

The second obstacle is that China is surrounded by American allies.
Some such as Japan (and to a lesser extent South Korea and Taiwan)
have significant military forces to defend themselves from Chinese encroachment.
Taiwan sticks out as a major spur aimed squarely at China’s southeast coast.
Those that don’t have sufficient military defenses, like the Philippines, have firm US security guarantees.
China is currently at a serious geographic disadvantage in the waters off its coast.

This map, though, does not reveal a critical third piece of this puzzle
—the US Navy outclasses the Chinese navy in almost every regard,
despite impressive and continuing Chinese efforts to increase capabilities.
But looking at this map,
you can see why China wants to make noise in its coastal waters and how China is limited by an arc of American allies.
You can also see why one of China’s major goals will be to attempt to entice any American allies to switch sides. Consequently,
China’s moves regarding the Philippines require close observation in 2017.

http://www.mauldineconomics.com/this-week-in-geopolitics/the-geopolitics-of-2017-in-4-maps#