Regional maritime security challenges extend beyond any one nation’s borders and national jurisdiction. These challenges will become more acute as the regional dynamics in the Asia Pacific evolve and necessitate regional action and cooperation to be overcome.

In order to examine maritime security challenges in the Asia Pacific and to identify ways to enhance regional understanding and cooperation among the major powers, the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy and the Shanghai Academy for Social Sciences’ Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies held a two-day conference, inviting both international and Chinese academics and foreign policy practitioners. Participants discussed a range of issues including crisis management measures, potential areas of collaboration and cooperation and the key factors that can cause misunderstandings between countries in the region.

This conference was part of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences’ annual seminar series, and was the first conference and first year that the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy co-sponsored such an event.