China's rise on the world's oceans is attracting wide attention and may ultimately restructure the global balance of power during the course of the 21st century. Many books have described this phenomenon and the significant strategic implications that flow from Beijing's rapid maritime development. However, the subject of whether and how to potentially integrate a stronger China into a global maritime security partnership has not been adequately explored. Delving into a variety of vital domains of contemporary maritime security, American and Chinese contributors to this edited volume illustrate that despite recent turbulence in U.S.-China military relations, substantial shared interests should enable extensive maritime security cooperation, as the two maritime great powers attempt to reach an understanding of "competitive coexistence." China's reaction to the United States' new maritime strategy, for instance, will significantly impact its success. Based on the premise that preventing wars is as important as winning wars, this new U.S. strategy embodies a historic reassessment of the international system and how the United States can best pursue its interests in cooperation with other nations. But for professionals to structure cooperation effectively, they warn, Washington and Beijing must create sufficient political and institutional space. This is the fourth book in the series "Studies in Chinese Maritime Development" published jointly by the China Maritime Studies Institute and the Naval Institute Press. "These essays bear close reading because they faithfully reflect the thinking and policies of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) and the People's Liberation Army (PLA), which comprises all of China's armed forces." --Richard Halloran, Parameters 42.1 (Spring 2012): 118-19. "an impressive series... notable in containing contributions from several Chinese academics." --Conrad Waters, Review of Four Naval Institute Press Books, "Naval Books of the Year," Warship 2012 : 190-91. "It is unusual for a book on military affairs to be suffused with optimism, but this one is optimistic as well as interesting. It consists of papers presented at a Conference at the US Naval War College in December 2007, with some added later. The authors and editors do a good job of integrating and relating subsequent events up to March 2010. ...undergraduates, graduate students, and most China scholars will find this book interesting and informative." -Harlan W. Jencks, The China Quarterly , 208 (December 2011): 1034-36 . "An oft-heard refrain from international relations specialists...is that maritime confidence-building measures and maritime cooperation are necessary to lessen tensions...the difficulty is moving from the "general" exhortation for cooperation to the "specific" practicalities of what is achievable...that is the main utility of this book--it is written by practitioners who discuss issues and proffer options that can be used" -Andrew Forbes, "China and Sea Power in the Twenty-First Century," International Journal of Maritime History 23.1 (June 2011): 341-46. "The US Naval Institute Press has, along with the China Maritime Studies Institute at the US Naval War College, published key studies on PRC maritime developments. ... The new book by the two institutes...takes understanding of the PRC's maritime ambitions to the next level." -Gregory R. Copley, "Focus on PLA(N)," Essential Reading: Important New Strategic Literature, Defense & Foreign Affairs Strategic Policy 4 (2011): 16. ADDITIONAL EVALUATIONS: "Chinese sea power is very much a concern of U.S. naval strategists and factors in the deliberations of the United States as it attempts to balance its force structure to fight and win high-intensity wars as well as low intensity conflicts. ... The[se] papers explore the issue of integrating China into a global maritime security partnership." -Richard R. Burgess, Managing Editor, "Books Detail Chinese Naval Strategy," Seapower 54.7 (July 2011), 49. "Each year there is one book that stands out from the pack. China, the United States and 21st Century Sea Power... needs to be read by every member of the Australian Naval Institute, not only because it provides a blue-print for naval policy in the Asia-Pacific Century but also because it is one of the few authoritative works that discusses a cooperative alternative to the sensationalist threat driven responses to the rise of China.  ...a positive, balanced, thought provoking, and timely study which will no doubt impact upon the relationship between China and the United States over the next twenty years. ... This book is highly recommended." -Gregory P. Gilbert, Air Power Development Centre, Headmark: Journal of the Australian Naval Institute (May 2011). "The essays, written by experts on both sides of the Pacific, present varied views typical of the spirit of academic freedom that prevails at the Naval War College (despite its governmental