Acceso usuarios
Jianing Chang, Pan Deng
A pesar de que el término Indo-Pacífico como región se ha convertido rápidamente en un concepto popular de la política internacional y, como resultado, Estados Unidos, Japón, India, Australia, Corea del Sur y algunos países de Europa han lanzado sus propias estrategias Indo-Pacíficas, todavía existen grandes discrepancias en la percepción del alcance geográfico de la región. En consecuencia, la posición, el punto de partida y el enfoque de las estrategias lanzadas por cada país también son muy diferentes. El texto tiene como objetivo proporcionar una opción viable basada en el Derecho Internacional para coordinar las diferentes demandas de intereses de diversos actores y poner fin a la confrontación entre ellos.El texto se dividirá en cuatro partes: en la primera, se examina cuáles son las diferencias en sus intereses en el territorio, combinando el punto de enfoque de sus estrategias y aprovechando su definición de la región. Basado en las teorías fundamentales de las relaciones internacionales y el orden internacional, y considerando los cambios y optimizaciones necesarias frente al mundo actual, esta parte pretende llegar a un consenso básico sobre qué tipo de orden regional o panregional se necesita en la región Indo-Pacífica. Sobre esta base, la segunda parte examinará las consideraciones de EEUU, la Unión Europea y la Asociación de Naciones de Asia Sudoriental (ASEAN) a la hora de llevar a cabo sus estrategias basándose en la perspectiva china. Al final de esta parte, los autores concluirán con un análisis desde el punto de vista de China de cómo se debería reaccionar ante el creciente interés por la región Indo-Pacífica. En la tercera parte del trabajo, se tratará de volver a la perspectiva global para identificar los sesgos o desviaciones cognitivas desde diversos puntos de vista sobre la diplomacia de China con los países vecinos pací-ficos; se hará mención especial a los de Europa en términos del mar meridional de China y el de China Continental y Taiwán.El objetivo es que los países europeos coordinen su estrategia Indo-Pacífica con China con una comprensión apro-piada de las intenciones chinas. En la última parte del trabajo, se propondrá sobre la base de las normas tradicio-nales del Derecho Internacional, los principios que deben seguir China y Europa para llevar a cabo sus respectivas estrategias en la región Indo-Pacífica de forma conjunta o con mutua consideración hacia la de la otra parte, con vistas a lograr el orden regional o panregional que se desprende de la primera parte del documento. El enfoque teórico-metodológico consiste en la introducción del análisis del interregionalismo. Se utiliza para investigar los vínculos e interacciones dinámicas entre dos o más regiones. Con el mismo enfoque, se entenderá mejor la lógica de comportamiento de diferentes actores y, gracias a ello, se favorecerá la realización del objetivo del trabajo y se planteará una opción con más viabilidad sobre la base de Derecho Internacional y un orden regional más equitativo, seguro e interconectado.
In the Indo-Pacific strategies launched by global actors, symmetric and asymmetric inter-regional rela-tions vary significantly. As a result of this strong asymmetry and various levels of asymmetry, different characteristics are present at the functional level in five dimensions, they’re leverage, institution-buil-ding, rationalization, agenda-setting and identity strengthening. This results in China showing greater tolerance for the European option than for Washington's option. Despite the absence of a corresponding strategy, China still continues the tradition of treating the Indo-Pacific region as multiple sub-regions. Plans and interactions with regard to ASEAN can be seen in the general thinking and logic of China's behavior towards the Indo-Pacific region. Consequently, China and the EU share common interests on this issue and there is no fundamental conflict between them. The time is ripe for an updated statement of principles based on international law regarding the relevant concepts of regional governance.This article aims to analyze how to coordinate different versions of Indo-Pacific strategies and propose a viable plan for the cooperation of different behavior bodies through four sections: 1) Comparison of geographic definitions and Indo-Pacific strategies of different countries or organizations; 2) Considera-tions of certain behavior bodies in pursuing their strategies based on the Chinese perspective and make a conclusion from China's point of view of how it should react to the growing interest in the Indo-Pacific region; 3) Identification of the cognitive biases and deviations from various points of view on the Chine-se policies; 4) Achievement of the “regional” and “pan-regional” order on the basis of the traditional ru-les of International law to facilitate the Sino-EU coordination and cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.The shift from the concept of the Asia-Pacific to the Indo-Pacific has changed the definition of the geographical scope of the region, but what has remained unchanged is the scramble and competition among countries for geopolitical interests. With the shift in the strategic focus of various countries, they have concentrated more on the interests of the Indo-Pacific region. The European Union and China, as two important extra-territorial actors in the Indo-Pacific region, have demonstrated their respective interests in their Indo-Pacific policies: the EU and its specific member states have employed a form of geographical “blurred” treatment. While emphasizing values, they focus more on economic interests in the region. For instance, Germany’s Indo-Pacific strategy, with its emphasis on multilateral cooperation, is concentrated in three areas: security, economy, and regional order.In terms of regional order and multilateralism, Germany seeks to shape a “rules-based regional order” through partnerships, global authoritative mechanisms, and regional multilateral arrangements. France’s Indo-Pacific strategy reflects a similar “inclusive” approach based on rules and shared interests, but at the same time, it does not shy away from seeking limited leadership in the region. China has yet to formu-late its own Indo-Pacific strategy, and it is difficult to detect any signs of this Asian giant following up on this agenda. In the context where major actors have introduced their own systematic or non-systematic Indo-Pacific action plans, this has led to speculations about China’s “strategic ambiguity” in the region. Consequently, by connecting China’s specific, localized, and particular actions in the Indo-Pacific based on its intended strategy and logic for the region, various degrees of misunderstandings have emerged. The innovation of the study lies in combining the research theory of interregionalism and the relevant principles of international law to provide more feasible solutions for the actors to strengthen coopera-tion and reconcile differences in the Indo-Pacific region.The first group of theories —known as domestic and foreign perspective— focusing on comparative analyses from the internal and external perspectives of an actor to derive differences in the logic of thinking in the formulation and implementation of a particular policy or strategy, and through such comparisons to characterize the modes of action of the different actors in order to safeguard their own interests and to avoid conflict and confrontation.The second group of theories —method of interregional analysis— focusing on the five functions of the research methodology to analyze how it works organically in the process of interaction and communi-cation between actors within the Indo-Pacific region. Leverage refers to the dynamic equilibrium in the relationship between the key players in the maintenance of multilateral relations through inter-regional and trans-regional forums.
Institution-building refers to the contractual and formal institutions such as cooperation and dialogue accords and partnership agreements, as well as the "soft institutional" mechanisms of dialogue such as the regular summits, ministerial and senior officials' meetings and civil society forums among diffe-rent actors. Rationalization refers to the fact that the interconnectivity among interregional actors can effectively simplify the overloaded agendas of redundant global multilateral forums and promote more effective policy implementation. Agenda-setting refers to the reduction of costs and resource savings that countries can achieve by setting their own agendas after rationalizing themselves. Identity stren-gthening, on the other hand, refers to the fact that interregionalism catalyzes wider and deeper regio-nalization, contributing to the creation and strengthening of regional collective identities.The third group of theories —introduction of principles of international law— highlights the disordered nature of the competing interests of relevant actors in the Indo-Pacific domain, so there is an urgent need to balance the rivalries and even conflicts between states through the normative nature of in-ternational law. Cooperation or communication between actors in the Indo-Pacific region tends to be asymmetric due to realism and neo-liberalism, with varying degrees of imbalance resulting in actors not being able to be fully effective and to achieve the objectives of cooperation. The principles of interna-tional law have solved the problem and effectively clarified the misunderstandings caused by different countries' ideological differences with regard to different versions of the Indo-Pacific strategy.When these theoretical frameworks are introduced into the study, it is not difficult to see that coopera-tion between different actors exhibits the characteristics of bloc politics and ideological confrontation. The contradictions and problems to be dealt with will be deconstructed into: how to seek the possibility of cooperation and development in the Indo-Pacific region between China and the European Union un-der the premise of complying with the principles of international law, to further promote the formation of a multi-polar pattern in the Indo-Pacific region, and to provide a stable and fair environment for the development of the relevant actors both inside and outside the region.Finally, the article will propose five updated principles from the Chinese perspective and the tradition of international law. These principles are not only China's expectations for the development of and coo-peration among political forces in the Indo-Pacific region, but also apply to any scenario in the world where relevant interregional actors deal with conflicts and deepen cooperation. These principles, on the one hand, demonstrate China's desire for a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific environment and, on the other hand, show China's determination to oppose hegemonic politics and unequal and asymmetrical interregional relations.
