Order, Contestation and Ontological Security-Seeking in the South China Sea

Anisa Heritage is Research Fellow in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Kent, UK.Pak K. Lee is Senior Lecturer in Chinese Politics and International Relations in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Kent, UK.

“This book is a useful addition to the OST literature, supplementing the many such case studies on Poland, the EU, Russian order building, even the British role in the American Civil War. It is masterfully researched with comprehensive bibliographies and analytical footnotes on both OST and SCS.” (James L Huskey, Governance, Issue (1-3), 2020)

• 1. Introduction.- 2. Theoretical Framework: International Order-Building, Ontological Security and Legitimation.- 3. American Construction of Regional Order in the Asia-Pacific, 1945-1955.- 4. Developments in Regional Maritime Order from the 1970s: UNCLOS and the US Principle of Freedom of Navigation.- 5. China's Contestation of US Order-Building.- 6. Regional Contestation of China's Order-Building Project.- 7. Conclusions: A Sino-American Grand Bargain to Settle the Disputes?.