Chinese and Japanese navies

It is widely understood that control of global waterways has allowed empires mercantile advantage. As the sole naval power of the 20th century, America was able to control the flow of global trade and profited immensely. During the 21st century, will America be able to maintain this grip on waterway traffic, or will it have to share with other naval powers?

Immediately, Somalian pirates come to mind. Since the outbreak of pirates off the coast of Somalia, national navies have escorted their commercial vessels. While this allows the U.S. a lesser financial burden for protecting all commercial vessels, this also signifies the end of American naval dominance as other countries gain modern naval know-how, including operation of equipment and vessels in a hostile environment, in addition to logistical and supply-chain management.

In Asia, both Japan and China are watching each other closely. Japan's domestic politics have discouraged direct Japanese naval support. On the other hand, Japan does keep a close tab on Chinese military movements, and build-up of a naval presence. Perhaps most threatening is the construction of Chinese aircraft carriers. The development of a modern Chinese navy will break America's monopoly, and will create the threat Japanese hawks have been waiting for as an excuse for Japan to re-deploy its own navy. The U.S. will also have to work hard to maintain its strength in the Pacific to protect its interests; as one strategic point, the fate of the U.S. bases in Okinawa is far from certain.

China's naval build-up is starting to attract new interest - watch this space, as are Japan, Korea and the U.S.