MANILA, Philippines \u2014 China released its first white paper on national security this week amid what Beijing calls \u201cintensifying geopolitics\u201d in the region marked by the deployment of an \u201cintermediate-range missile system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 23-page \u201cChina\u2019s National Security in the New Era,\u201d released in Mandarin by the State Council Information Office, outlined the country\u2019s security issues in a region it described as mired in \u201cintensifying geopolitics, hegemonism and the return of Cold War mentality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Chinese government has for years made public its defense white papers, but it\u2019s the first time it has released a national security document that touches on a range of security threats, from maritime and territorial disputes, terrorism, biotechnology, and food security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asia-Pacific, the document noted, faces \u201csevere\u201d security challenges amid an escalating international arms race. China claimed \u201csome countries\u201d strengthened military alliances in the region, wooed regional partners, built \u201csmall groups,\u201d and deployed military capabilities such as the \u201cintermediate-range missile system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While China did not mention any country, the U.S. deployed last year a Typhon missile launcher in the Philippines as part of annual joint exercises between American and Filipino troops under a post-war defense treaty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chinese officials have taken the pre-positioning of American military assets in the Philippines as a direct threat and repeatedly urged Manila to withdraw the missile system. The Philippines, however, refused and claimed it has plans to acquire similar systems in the future as part of military modernization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The presence of the launchers has \u201caggravated regional tensions,\u201d the white paper read. \u201cUnresolved territorial and maritime rights disputes have become more difficult and complicated \u2026 with the intervention of foreign forces.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
China has always frowned upon what it calls the \u201cforeign interference of extra regional powers,\u201d Julio Amador III, founder of geopolitical risk firm Amador Research, told Defense News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cChina probably released this now to low-key accuse the U.S. of being the source of instability, and offering itself as an alternative partner,\u201d Amador said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The national security white paper was released on the heels of a high-level meeting in Geneva over the weekend, where Chinese and American officials agreed to cut tariffs for 90 days. Negotiations came after the two countries hurled fourfold tariff hikes at each other beginning in early April.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
China\u2019s sentiments on the tariff war are reflected in the white paper, which focuses on how some countries disregarded international obligations and imposed tariffs that disrupted the global economic order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Amid trade uncertainties, China indicated plans to build a free trade zone to be piloted in Hainan, an island province in the South China Sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The government also unveiled plans to establish offices to review foreign investments that could impact national security after other countries launched tariff, trade, and technology wars and instigated public opinions against China in the name of security, the document said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The paper also reiterated a \u201cpeaceful reunification\u201d with Taiwan and China\u2019s support in completing a long-debated Code of Conduct in the South China Sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite highlighting multilateral mechanisms in the white paper, Amador said the document may not significantly change China\u2019s positioning or posturing in disputed areas, a bane of contention for Manila which has for decades bemoaned the dissonance between China\u2019s foreign policy declarations and the activities of its People\u2019s Liberation Army Navy ships, coast guard vessels, and fishing flotillas in the South China Sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe white paper should not be taken at face value,\u201d Amador cautioned. He adds that it should be \u201cstudied with care, noting where PRC [People\u2019s Republic of China] actions do not match its words, and prepare for any eventualities.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Officials in Manila have said they want to acquire similar systems in the future as part of military modernization.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":110145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":45,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[45,160,11,36],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3459],"class_list":["post-70433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia-pacific","category-daily-news-roundup","category-global","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"QZXSM32FUZB7BG4VTLJJOEV5BQ","arc_canonical_url":"\/global\/asia-pacific\/2025\/05\/14\/us-typhon-missile-system-in-philippines-is-a-subtle-headache-for-china\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\n