Security Alignments in the Indo-Pacific

Abstract

In an increasingly uncertain international security order, security alignment has become more diversified. The prominent model of military alliances that prevailed during the Cold War and post-Cold War eras now provides relatively less stability in the global balance of power, as states actively seek new and flexible security alignments. This study questions what determines a state’s choices in managing its security alignment. It argues that threat perception plays a decisive role in shaping these choices. These choices range from traditional alliances to more flexible coalitions and to anti-alliance postures. Building on existing literature, this research critically assesses the balance of threat theory as a conceptual toolkit for analysing the geostrategic positioning of major powers in the region. This study employs security alignment as a key analytical concept encompassing various forms of security interaction. The Indo-Pacific, a recently emerged geostrategic construct, is used in this thesis to delineate the regional scope where competing security alignments among established and emerging powers are most visible. By examining the cases of China and South Korea, this study argues that the politics of threat perception are embedded in security alignment practices. Using the balance of threat theory’s variables, including aggressive intentions and geographic proximity, this research demonstrates the role of threat perception in China’s security alignment policy, reflected in its anti-alliance narrative, and in South Korea’s security alignment policy, centred on its alliance with the US, while reflecting a different degree of perceived threat compared to its patron state. This research implies that successful management of diverse threat perceptions is critical to building a stable Indo-Pacific security environment and identifies a key mechanism that has been operational in the region, using the case of Australia’s efforts to build security networks.