As China ramps up its military capabilities and tensions persist in the Taiwan Strait, there are growing concerns about the risk of conflict that could involve the United States. But it’s not just Taiwan that could spark conflict. China’s increasingly assertive presence is felt everywhere in the South China Sea from the Philippines to Malaysia. 

How will these conflicts develop? What do we know about China’s maritime strategy, and what lessons can we draw from Beijing’s behavior in the South China Sea for the country’s global ambitions? And how are countries in the region managing the rivalry between China and the U.S.? 

 Isaac Kardon, a senior fellow for China studies in Carnegie's Asia Program, joins Sophia to unpack the rising tensions in the South China Sea and the geopolitics of China’s maritime disputes.

1. Sheena Chestnut Greitens and Isaac Kardon. (2024, March 15). "Playing Both Sides of the U.S.-Chinese Rivalry." Foreign Affairs