Abstract

3 Reorientation of National Security Studies under the Framework ofthe General Security Theory

YU Xiaofeng and ZHANG Yadi

[Abstract] The discipline construction of national security studies is supposed to break down the barriers brought about by the traditional security thinking so as to take into consideration all the aspects of national security studies in line with the “general security”thinking when the world is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century.Security is a shared order that presents a state of “peace-cooperation”.What the general security theory intends to highlight is the value connotation of “peace-cooperativism” that embodies Chinese wisdom.The “general security” configuration which has taken shape along with the transformation of the outlook on the times, the expansion and deepening of security theories and the institutionalization of security researches renders itself as a“comprehensive context” for national security studies.National security should not only pay attention to security technologies, security issues, security threats and security crises,but also pay a high premium on security values, security structures, security trends and security strategies.A holistic approach to national security is an important milestone in the development of national security thoughts with Chinese characteristics.It is also an“overall concept” that guides the discipline construction of Chinese national security studies.“People-centeredness”, “systematicness” and “openness” are the key theoretical characteristics of a holistic approach to national security, which constructs an all-round value coordinate for the reorientation of national security studies.The feature of “broad interdisciplinariness” in national security studies is reflected in the logical positioning of“hybrid disciplines”, the construction of three theoretical forms of national security studies,the ontological reflection of “relational reality”, the revelation of the orientation of“domain extensibility” and “disciplinary reverse inclusion”, and the exploration of training objectives and pathways of “亦”-type national security professionals of high caliber.The three dimensions featuring “comprehensive context”, “overall concept” and“broad interdisciplinariness” set the new coordinates for the “reorientation” of national security studies with Chinese characteristics.

[Keywords] general security theory, a holistic approach to national security, nontraditional security, national security studies, hybrid discipline, 亦-type professionals

[Authors] YU Xiaofeng, Director and Professor, Centre for Non-Traditional Security &Peaceful Development Studies, Zhejiang University (Hangzhou, 310058); ZHANG Yadi,Doctor of Management, Lecturer at School of Journalism and Communication,Chongqing University (Chongqing, 400045).

32 Identity and Social Existence: The Quest for China’s OntologicalSecurity and Its Adaptation

XING Ruilei and ZHOU Haokun

[Abstract] Since the beginning of the 21st century, national and international security have faced new types of challenges arising from issues such as multiple identities, transnational communication networks, and collective emotion/affect in the confrontation between globalization and anti-globalization.This paper intends to clarify the theoretical significance of identities and collective emotion/affect in domestic and international security studies and distill the generative logic and analytical framework for national ontological security.In the era of globalization, multiple identity crises might lead to ontological insecurity.To maintain “social existence”, states may activate emotional/affective self-protection mechanisms and behave irrationally out of deep anxiety.This kind of “irrational behavior” may give rise to interstate conflict and confrontation.The search for national ontological security depends on the balanced development of two pathways, namely the continuity of states’ autobiographical narratives and the coordination mechanism of the “self-other” trust relationship.After discussions about the historical process of China’s quest for national ontological security, this paper argues that the autobiographical narrative of “What is China?” is shifting from an “inwardlooking” national subjectivity to an “outward-looking” “international agency” in a period that witnesses dramatic changes unseen in a century.The transformation of China’s national identity and the obtainment of national ontological security in the new era depend,on the one hand, on the successful construction of a domestically and internationally acknowledged new narrative system featuring China as a responsible major country, and on the other hand, on the reconstruction of the “coopetitive” and “peace-cooperative” trust relationship between China and the international community, particularly the Western major countries.The result of this adaptation is not only a prerequisite for positive “selfother” interactions but also a key determinant of China’s national security and international security.

[Keywords] national ontological security, state identity, collective emotion/affect,autobiographical narrative, “self-other” trust relationship

[Authors] XING Ruilei, Associate Professor, School of Political Science and Public Administration, Wuhan University; ZHOU Haokun, M.A.Student, School of Political Science and Public Administration, Wuhan University (Wuhan, 430072).

65 Digital Technology Competition and East Asian Security Order

SUN Xuefeng

[Abstract] The first two decades of the 21st century has witnessed in East Asia the emergence of a security order characterized by hedging.Specifically, heightened tensions in China-US strategic competition have not led to an arms race and bloc confrontation.Other East Asian countries, meanwhile, manage to maintain a balance rather than completely take sides between China and the US.However, as the world advances into the digital era, the US has been persisting in its efforts since 2018 to constrain the strength and global influence of China’s digital technology.Relying on technological advantages and alliance networks, the US set out to constrain China through expanding its security protection scope from the physical space to the digital space.Responding to such US efforts to transform its security system, China and most other East Asian countries still opt for the hedging approach.In other words, the East Asian security order continues to be characterized by the hedging pattern as it enters the digital era.The continuity of a hedging order can be explained by two factors.First, for East Asian countries, security threats in the physical space are still their primary concerns, which also has significant impact on their perception of security threats in the digital space.Second, the US’s capability advantage and its policy choices generate feelings of uncertainty among those countries seeking US protection in the digital space.Strategic hedging, thus, is the choice most conducive to maximizing national interests of these countries.These findings can not only help deepen our theoretical understanding of the regional/international order transformation in the digital era, but highlight the policy implications for managing China-US strategic competition in the digital era.

[Keywords] digital technology competition, digital age, security order, East Asia, Sino-U.S.relations

[Author] SUN Xuefeng, Professor, Institute of International Relations, Tsinghua University (Beijing, 100084).

91 Logic of Hegemony: The Multilateral Transformation of the USAsia-Pacific Security Strategy.

LING Shengli and WANG Yanfei

[Abstract] After the end of World War II, the US successfully built a network of bilateral alliances in the Asia-Pacific region.In recent years, it has become more active in strengthening multilateral security cooperation.From the Obama administration to the Biden administration, the US government has made significant adjustments in its Asia-Pacific security strategy, pushing for a shift from bilateralism to multilateralism.It is worth exploring the reason why the shift has occurred.The US tends to promote bilateral cooperation when it has a huge power advantage.When its power advantage shrinks, it places greater emphasis on multilateral cooperation.Whether its security cooperation is prone to forge alliances or adopt a relatively loose form of security cooperation depends on the nature of external threats and the degree of internal disagreements.The adjustment of forms of US security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region results from the narrowing power gap between China and the US, changes in external threats and disagreements among its allies.The multilateral form of security cooperation offers the US a greater capacity to mobilize its allies and maintain its hegemonic position.The US-Japan-ROK trilateral cooperation, the AUKUS trilateral security partnership, the Five Eyes and the Quad are all typical examples of the US efforts to shift from bilateralism to multilateralism.The US multilateral security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region boasts a solid foundation, a common identity and a variety of flexible cooperative forms that help the United States mobilize strategic resources and unite other countries to address threats of common concern.In a word, the multilateral security cooperation has greatly enhanced the US security mobilization capabilities, which exerts huge impact on the order of the Asia-Pacific region and puts greater security pressure on China.However, different cooperation mechanisms also witness different depths of cooperation and suffer from divergences among their members as well as fragmented cooperation-related issues.

[Keywords] multilateral security cooperation, alliance transformation, Asia-Pacific security, the US hegemony, Indo-Pacific strategy

[Authors] LING Shengli, Deputy Director and Associate Professor, Institute of International Relations, China Foreign Affairs University (Beijing, 100037); WANG Yanfei, Ph.D.Student, Department of International Relations, School of Social Sciences,Tsinghua University (Beijing, 100084).

127 The Transboundary Nature of National Gateway Security Governance:A Two-tier Governance Framework

WANG Feiyi

[Abstract] Based on the transboundary nature of “national gateway” governance, this paper intends to explore the construction of a “national gateway” governance framework from the perspective of two-tier transboundary governance.“National gateway” security refers to the state where national security and interests safeguarded by port supervisory authorities are free from danger and threat through the performance of their statutory functions as well as laws and regulations they are authorized to enforce.It also refers to the capacity to continuously maintain national security in the entry and exit links.“National gateway” security is not only an integral part of national security, but also an important protective barrier for ensuring security in other domains as well as the overall national security.“National gateway” security is in the nature of intermestic security,which is characterized by cross-borderness and dispersion, dynamicness and linear flow,constructiveness and initiative, spillover and symbiosis, virtuality and boundlessness.Consequently, the time and space for prevention and control of “national gateway”security risks will move forward and backward at the ports of entry along the cross-border supply chain, thus rendering an attribute of transnational public goods to “national gateway” security.

[Keywords] national gateway security, intermestic security, transnational public goods, a two-tier governance framework, international regimes

[Author] WANG Feiyi, Associate Professor, School of Customs and Public Administration,Shanghai Customs College (Shanghai, 201204).