1、S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 2 By Oriana Skylar MastroE A S T A N D S O U T H C H I N A S E A S B U L L E T I N 5 The Sansha Garrison:Chinas Deliberate Escalation in the South China SeaAbout this publicationThe bulletin series provides timely analysis and information on security issues in the East and So
2、uth China Seas.For further information,please contact infocnas.org.China is conducting a coordinated and deliberate campaign of coercive diplomacy in the South China Sea.For example,China recently decided to build a military garrison with little operational utility in the city of Sansha,with the app
3、arent goal of consolidating control over disputed islands and increasing its regional influence.That decision fundamentally challenges two key aspects of the conventional wisdom in Washington about Chinas South China Sea strategy:that Chinas assertive behavior results from actions taken by the civil
4、ian and military agencies independently of the central government and that China has been moderating its policies toward the South China Sea since 2009.In late June,the Chinese State Council upgraded Sansha,a community on Woody Island in the disputed Paracel Islands,to the status of a prefecture-lev
