Analysis Of Military Rivalry Between China And Japan

II. Military Rivalry between China and Japan 1995 -2014
In the previous explanation we already talk about what geopolitics is, the cause why geopolitics is a major theme Sino-Japanese relation and its impact and application in China and Japan relationship, albeit briefly. Then, it raises a question. What is the purpose of engaging in geopolitics? The main purpose of engaging in geopolitics can be simply summarized as state’s desire to acquire as much power (struggle of power), concerning its geographical environment, to aid the fulfillment of national interests. If a state can fulfill its national interests and even has some power and resources surplus, the said states would have more “bargaining chip” in order to assert its position in international
It is clearly seen by China and Japan effort to outdo each other. Balance of power is a concept of maintaining international order by engaging in power competition. There are two ways to reach balance of power, which are External Balance and Internal Balance . The External Balance is a condition where a state tries to balance out emerging major power by creating an alliance with a few smaller states. This is the basic theory of the creation of NATO, Warsaw Pact and other collective security organizations. Another means to reach balance of power is called internal balance, where state resort to an option of amassing and increasing states capabilities and hard power to be able to successfully survive in war or even win the
The rise of the budget itself was started in 1990 and keeps increasing since, mostly toward offensive weapon. China’s motivation, as officially stated, was to deter Taiwan from seceding. China reasoned that it is necessary to put on “hard mask” to maintain its sovereignty. Since 1990, every year China’s military budget increases 9% in average , which almost double the amount in every 5 year. China was the eighth largest military spending in 2002 now hiked up the rank and become the second largest in 2012 . The high acceleration of military development even led US, the strongest country in the world , to declare that China portrays a potential threat to the US . This increase is backed by rapid development of China’s economy . However, as the time goes on, China’s intention is losing credibility. Offensive weapon amassed way more than enough to subdue Taiwan, which led to the suspicion that China is planning something greater than what it