China`s Science Diplomacy in the South China Sea:Exploring, calming and owning the waters

Abstract

The South China Sea is not only the arena of conflicting sovereignty claims, but is also increasingly identified as one of the most significant environmental hotspots of the 21st century. The impact of continuous coastal development, escalating reclamation and augmenting maritime traffic is now routinely placed in front of the eyes of the world. With dwindling fisheries in the region`s coastal areas, fishing state subsidies, overlapping EEZ claims, and projects of seabed mining and oil drilling, gloomy scenarios on food security and renewable marine resources are rapidly becoming a dire reality. These critical ecological circumstances are in negative combination with the complex geopolitical ecosystem of the area, in which China`s territorial ambitions are resisted or challenged by a number of regional stakeholders and the United States. In this difficult predicament, science diplomacy - international science cooperation intended primarily to improve political relations with other countries - may play a crucial role. The growing centrality of science diplomacy within public policy is reflective of its new status as the practice of foreign policy needs to adapt to a reality of scientific and technical pervasiveness. In fact, many of the defining challenges the region is facing have scientific dimensions, and none of the littoral countries will be able to solve these problems on its own. For this reason, they need an ambit and instrument for enhancing mutual trust, strengthening cooperation and share interests without directly involving their territorial disputes. Fortunately, joint scientific investigations have the potential to spread the norms of scientific inquiry to enhance governance. Therefore, the collaboration of epistemic communities from the claimant nations can create synergies and ‘spaces of trust` for circumventing the sovereignty debate by focusing on science-based cooperation and co-manage the sea. Science diplomacy would also serve as a vector for implementing public diplomacy strategies, especially for China, which is strong in science and technology relations and has a regional bully image problem. However, an analysis of China`s scientific activities and collaborative projects indicates that Beijing might be using scientific cooperation mainly as a conduit of soft power and Sino-centric discourses, and present any collaboration as a concession, rather than a partnership on an equal footing.