Coast Guard Cooperation in the South China Sea

Abstract

The recent emergence of coast guard capabilities in East Asia necessitates a deeper assessment of the potential and limit of coast guard co-operation. Developing a framework of analysis based on the experiences of confidence-building measures (cbms) within the United Nations and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (csce), this article examines if enhanced coast guard cooperation can be a tool to build trust among littoral states in the South China Sea, reduce tension and increase stability in the region. The potential and limit of coast guard cooperation as a confidence-building measure are assessed along five dimensions: First, the importance of local ownership. Second, the necessity of a multi-level operational approach. Moreover, the challenge of spoilers and bureaucratic fragmentation. Fourth, transnational coast guards cooperation in disputed waters, and finally, the risk of cooperation and confidence-building being undermined by great power competition in contested waters.