What explains continuity and change in post-Cold War maritime security strategies? What lessons can we learn from the employment of such comprehensive grand strategies in maritime regions where traditional and non-traditional threats converge? While many scholars have addressed particular maritime security issues, this author joins the few who engage themselves in the study of the conceptual development of maritime security. Through the lens of structural realism, this thesis examines the logic of the maritime security strategies employed in two distinguished regions by the US and EU member states Finland and Sweden. It concludes that while their maritime security concept remains broad, the recent increase in security pressure has renewed the priority assigned to the military sector of security. Navies are thus re-using the measures implemented by a broad set of civil agencies and the shipping industry to improve maritime security, to gain the level of maritime domain awareness required for establishing regional sea control and project power from the sea. / Vad förklarar kontinuitet och förändring i staters maritima säkerhetsstrategier efter det kalla krigets slut? Vilka lärdomar kan vi dra av deras implementering av allomfattande säkerhetsstrategier i maritima regioner där traditionella och icke-traditionella hot sammanfaller?  Medan många forskare valt att fokusera på specifika maritima säkerhetsproblem som piratverksamhet, terrorism eller smuggling av droger och människor, förenar denna avhandlings författare sig med det fåtal som engagerat sig i studiet av begreppet maritim säkerhets konceptuella utveckling. Genom en teoretisk lins av strukturell realism undersöker författaren av denna avhandling logiken bakom de maritima säkerhetsstrategier som implementerats av USA respektive EU-länderna Finland och Sverige i Ost- och Sydostasien samt i Östersjön.  I avhandlingen dras slutsatsen att medan dessa staters maritima säkerhetskoncept permanent breddats till att omfatta hot inom olika säkerhetssektorer, innebär de senaste årens ökade säkerhetstryck att hot inom den militära säkerhetssektorn åter prioriteras. De undersökta staternas marinstridskrafter drar därmed nytta av den mångfald av maritima säkerhetsåtgärder som implementerats av civila myndigheter och sjöfartsindustrin i syfte att förbättra maritim säkerhet för handelssjöfart, främja miljöskydd och möjliggöra exploatering av maritima naturresurser, till att upprätta militär kontroll över viktiga havsområden samt projicera militär makt från havet. / <p>Docent Steve Lindberg utgjorde min handledare vid Åbo Akademi till och med sin pensionering år 2016.</p><p>Professor Göran Djupsund utgjorde min handledare vid Åbo Akademi från och med 2016.</p><p>Professor Jerker Widén utgjorde min utsedde biträdande handledare vid Försvarshögskolan.</p>

Le but de cette thèse est de reconstruire l’évolution environnementale de la région nord de la mer de Chine du Sud au cours du Quaternaire récent. L'objectif est d'identifier des traceurs des interactions continent-océan, de la mousson est-asiatique et de la circulation océanique. Pour cela, des analyses des minéralogies argileuse et magnétique, de la composition en éléments majeurs, et la taille des grains ont été effectuées sur les sédiments de carotte MD12-3432 couvrant les derniers 400 ka avec un taux de sédimentation variant entre 4.5 et 24 cm/ka. Nous avons tout d'abord amélioré les calibrations de la composition en éléments majeurs obtenue par XRF core-scanning. En effet, celles-ci ne corrigeaient pas des variations de teneur en eau interstitielle observées la séquence sédimentaire étudiée. Nous avons donc proposé une correction polynomiale quadratique qui convertit maintenant correctement les données XRF core-scanning en concentrations précises d’éléments majeurs. La composition en élément majeurs, les minéralogies argileuse et magnétique, et la granulométrie indiquent que les changements climatiques à basse latitude influencent les diverses fractions terrigènes de différentes manières. Considérant d’abord les éléments majeurs et les argiles, nous observons que les rapports smectite/(illite+chlorite) et K₂O/Al₂O₃ présentent tous deux des cyclicités orbitales. Le rapport K₂O/Al₂O₃ qui reflète la contribution relative des apports de Taiwan par dénudation, augmente pendant les interglaciaires quand la mousson d’été asiatique est forte. Le rapport smectite/(illite+chlorite) présente des cyclicités également liées à l’excentricité et à la précession en phase avec les changements d’insolation de l’hémisphère nord en été. Connaissant les régions sources de ces argiles, nous suggérons que l’apport en smectite est étroitement lié à l'intensité de l’altération chimique et à la dénudation fluvial induite par les fortes précipitations de mousson, tandis que l’apport d’illite/chlorite depuis Taiwan répond principalement à la dénudation. Le rapport smectite/(illite+chlorite) reflète ainsi principalement l'intensité de l’altération chimique contemporaine (rapide) et donc l’intensité de la mousson d'été asiatique. Les résultats obtenus confirment que la mousson d'été asiatique est renforcée pendant les périodes interglaciaires et quand l'insolation d'été boréal est forte. Les propriétés magnétiques sédimentaires offrent des informations complémentaires sur les changements environnementaux passés dans cette région. La fraction magnétique de la carotte MD12-3432 est composée de magnétites, sulfures de fer et hématite. Des augmentations de teneur en hématite et des diminutions de la granulométrie sédimentaire sont observées aux minima de précession. Ces évènements qui ont lieu pendant les périodes arides pourraient illustrer des apports éoliens depuis le nord de la Chine, liés à des changements d'intensité et/ou de route des vents, probablement aussi liés à l’intensification de la mousson d'hiver. Outre les changements climatiques de basse latitude, le climat global et l'activité tectonique influencent aussi les apports terrigènes dans cette région. Les augmentations à long terme de la teneur en pyrrhotite par rapport à la magnétite et à l’hématite, de la teneur de illite/chlorite indiquent une contribution croissante de sédiment fine d'origine Taiwanaise au cours des derniers 400 ka. Ceci est très probablement lié à l’intensification de l'orogenèse taïwanais. A l'échelle glaciaire-interglaciaire, les variations synchrones des compositions argileuse et magnétique, de la taille des grains sédimentaires et magnétiques, et des taux de sédimentation sont attribuées aux changements de niveau marin. En effet, les bas niveaux marins pendant les périodes glaciaires exposent l’immense plateau continental et permettent à la Rivière des Perles de livrer au site du sédiment terrigène en plus grande quantité et plus grossier. / The aim of this study is to reconstruct late Quaternary environmental changes in the northern South China Sea by applying multi-disciplinary proxies of land-sea interaction, East Asian monsoon, and oceanic circulation. Investigations of clay and magnetic mineralogy, major element composition, and grain size were performed on marine sediment Core MD12-3432 retrieved from the continental slope of the northern South China Sea. The core covers the last 400 ka with a sedimentation rate varying between 4.5 and 24 cm/ka. We examined the accuracy of existing calibration methods on major element composition obtained by XRF core-scanning, because downcore variations in interstitial water content should strongly affect scanned element contents. We proposed a quadratic polynomial correction to account for this effect and implemented it in the calibration methods. Data from Core MD12-3432 show that the improved calibration process now correctly converts XRF core-scanning data into major element concentrations. Our results on high-resolution major element composition, clay and magnetic mineralogy, and grain size data indicate that low-latitude climate changes influence various terrigenous fractions in different ways. In bulk sediment, K₂O/Al₂O₃ ratio mainly reflects the relative contribution of detrital supply from Taiwan, and its variation exhibits eccentricity cycles. The ratio increases during interglacials, showing that strong precipitation and denudation are induced by enhanced East Asian summer monsoon. In clay fractions, smectite/(illite+chlorite) ratio presents both eccentricity and precession periodicities, in phase with the northern hemisphere summer insolation changes and therefore with the East Asian summer monsoon evolution. Based on the knowledge of sediment provenances, these results suggest that high smectite/(illite+chlorite) ratios illustrate contemporaneous chemical weathering intensity in Luzon. It supports the understanding that East Asian summer monsoon is enhanced during interglacial periods and when the boreal summer insolation is strong. Therefore, these two ratios are appropriate sedimentary tracers for East Asian summer monsoon evolution in the South China Sea. The magnetic fraction yields complementary information about environmental changes in the South China Sea. The magnetic mineral assemblage of Core MD12-3432 is mainly composed of magnetite, sulphide, and hematite, and the relative contributions of all these magnetic mineral contents change with time. Variations on precessional band related to the low latitude East Asian monsoon are observed in magnetic properties and grain size values. High magnetic inputs with high hematite proportion, which is part of fine-grain sediment, are observed during the precession minima. These events occurring during arid periods may illustrate enhanced eolian inputs caused by changes in intensity and/or winds pathway of winds, probably related to enhanced winter monsoon. Besides the low-latitude climate changes, global climate and tectonic activity also influence the terrigenous composition at the studied site at different timescales. A long-term increase in pyrrhotite content with respect to magnetite and hematite and in illite/chlorite contents indicates an increasing contribution of fine grained sediments from Taiwan. This is most likely related to the intensification of Taiwanese orogeny over the last 400 ka. On glacial-interglacial scale, coeval increases observed in sedimentation rate, magnetite/pyrrhotite content, kaolinite content, and grain size during glacial periods are attributed to sea-level changes. Low sea-level during glacial periods exposes the vast shelf and allows the Pearl River to deliver more and coarser terrigenous sediments to our site.

This diploma thesis, entitled "The Geopolitical Importance of the South China Sea", deals with the issue of the South China Sea dispute in view of the economic and strategic importance of the region. The main goal is to analyze the claims of individual countries and to find out whether this dispute has the potential to grow into an armed conflict. The dispute arose from overlapping territorial claims that countries in the region began to make after the end of World War II. This is primarily the case of the various maritime features in the vicinity of which there are considerable reserves of natural resources. It is the interest in securing these resources that is the main issue of the dispute. To this day, this situation has not been resolved and on the contrary it has triggered a response from states outside the region, mainly the United States of America and Japan. In order to achieve the goal of this diploma thesis, the theoretical framework, which is geopolitics and critical geopolitics, is first introduced. Furthermore, the general meaning of seas and oceans with the current legislation is introduced. On this basis, country case studies are conducted with the aim of making a comparative analysis that should clarify the current form of the dispute and the potential of the dispute to grow into...

This diploma thesis is an analysis of Bush and Obama administrations' approach towards Sino-American military relations. The topic of this thesis is the military cooperation between the People's Republic China (PRC) and the United States. The paper analyzes the trends and topics of the military-to-military contacts through the Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) theory. The bilateral relationship between the two countries is the most important relationship in the 21st century and its development has worldwide implications. Historically, there have been multiple points of tension where interests of both countries collided, many of which persisted to be sources of the new unease. The American support to Taiwan through numerous arms-sales, increased Chinese militarization of space, cyberspace and the South China Sea are the main causes of reluctant military-to-military cooperation between the PRC and the U.S. It is vital for the rest of the global community that both superpowers keep an acceptable amount of tensions between their armies and ideally pursue more cooperation than competition. The paper concludes that the Sino-American military relations have gone through an on-and-off pattern during both Bush administrations, mainly due to aforementioned American support for Taiwan, and due to the types...

This Master's thesis is focusing on why the United States of America never ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It is analysing the prevailing arguments which were used in 1982, which led to President Ronald Reagan never ratifying the Convention. As well as why the same thing happened in 1994 when the United Nations agreed on an Update to the Convention. Then the thesis is focusing on crucial parts of the Convention, which are part of the arguments for or against the ratification of the Convention, as well as those which have a great influence on the American approach to the high seas. Furthermore, this thesis is trying to offer a current insight into the problematic of why the United States still did not ratify the Convention, despite the fact that they used the Convention as an explanation why they patron the high seas as well as the right of innocent passage. At the same time, the findings are then looked at from the perspective of the South China Sea, which is a region the United States monitor. This last part is attempting to do several things. First, it is explaining the issue of the South China Sea and the interest of the United States in it. Then it is looking at the way by which the United States try to promote their interests in the region on how the fact them...

This diploma thesis deals with the rise of China in the context of its behavior in the South China Sea over the past decade. The significant economic growth of the People's Republic of China over the last few decades is expected to affect not only the regional balance of powers, but also its position within the international system. There is a wide-ranging debate in academia about how China will grow and how it will affect the international community. As a reaction, in order to explain its growth, China has introduced the concept of "peaceful development", according to which its growth should be seen as an opportunity rather than a threat to the international community. An offensive realism approach was chosen for this work and the ideas of its main advocate John Mearsheimer will be applied to the specific behavior of China in the region. The role of the United States, which influences China's behavior, will also be discussed. The diploma thesis will further deal with the increased Chinese assertiveness in the area of South China Sea and the means it uses in it to enforce its claims. The basic aim of this work is to underscore the contrast between the declared official policy of China and its actual behavior.

This thesis examines the geopolitical consequences of China's search for energy resources on the Indian Ocean and South China Sea. It provides a brief outline of the energy situation of the world as a whole, specifically how it is becoming a more globalized and singular market. This change is occurring at the same time as a pronounced shift away from the traditional measurements of 'power' towards 'softer' more subtle definitions. There is a brief section outlining the geopolitical teachings of Alfred T. Mahan, specifically how he advocated seapower primarily for the purpose of providing the stability and security necessary for trade. Chinese analysts have been embracing the teachings of Mahan, but also interpreting them in a way that justifies the naval buildup Beijing has been embarking on in recent years. The paper briefly looks at the potential sources that China could turn to meet its energy needs, but concludes that it will have to rely on oil for the foreseeable future. It then attempts to define overall Chinese interests, specifically how nearly all of these relate somehow to energy security, thus underlining the importance of this topic to leaders in Beijing. The last half of the work delves into a geopolitical analysis of the Indian Ocean and South China Sea, and how militarization in the...

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This dissertation aims to discover the hidden pattern and rationales behind China's South China Sea policies over the last one hundred years from the perspective of Chinese strategic culture. A historical-cultural approach is a powerful tool in uncovering deeper understandings of the Chinese way of policy making and strategy on issues such as the South China Sea. The key research questions include: first, is there any historical legitimacy in China's sovereignty claim over the South China Sea islands? Second, do Beijing's South China Sea policies in various periods have any regularity or pattern, and how did they serve China's grand strategies at the time? By utilizing extensive Chinese and English primary sources and other sources, this study conducts a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of the South China Sea issue from the framework of Chinese strategic culture.