Andrew S. Erickson

The Gun, The Knife, The Pen, The Paper, and The Blood…
These are not future John Grisham novels, but rather the essential instruments by which a PRC paramount leader consolidates and holds power:

The Gun: PLA
The Knife: domestic security services
The Pen: propaganda system
The Paper: bureaucracy
The Blood: red families/“princelings”

In this landmark article, the brilliant Jamestown Foundation team explains […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “China’s Naval Leadership: Corruption and Capabilities,” Keynote Address at Defense Innovation Days; organized by SENEDIA, The Alliance for Defense Tech, Talent, and Innovation; Newport, Rhode Island, 26 August 2025.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE KEYNOTE ADDRESS.

RESEARCH ON WHICH THIS PRESENTATION IS BASED:
Andrew S. Erickson, “The China Navy Leadership Bookshelf,” China Analysis from Original […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “The China Navy Leadership Bookshelf,” China Analysis from Original Sources 以第一手资料研究中国, 8 September 2025.
Since Xi assumed power in 2012, scores of flag and general officers and defense industry leaders have been removed. This is part of a larger pattern across China’s entire Party-State-Military bureaucracy. By my running tally, Xi-era removals within China’s […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “Confirmed: ADM Yuan Huazhi Removed as the PLAN’s Political Commissar,” CMSI Note 16 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 4 September 2025).

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From CMSI Director Christopher Sharman:

China Navy Watchers: As Xi Jinping presided over yesterday’s military parade in Beijing, the spectacle on Tiananmen […]

Andrew S. Erickson, Jason Wang, Pei-Jhen Wu, Marvin Bernardo, “Rigging the Game: PRC Oil Structures Encroach on Taiwan’s Pratas Island,” Jamestown China Brief (2 September 2025); 25.16 (6 September 2025): 18–29.
Research featured in:

Helen Davidson, “China Drilling for Oil and Gas inside Taiwan’s Exclusive Economic Zone,” The Guardian, 2 September 2025.
Helen Davidson, “Taiwan Accuses China of Breaching International Law […]

Ryan D. Martinson, The PLAN Corruption Paradox: Insights from the 1st Destroyer Flotilla, China Maritime Report 49 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 13 August 2025).

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From CMSI Director Christopher Sharman:
China Navy Watchers: Stories of senior Chinese Navy (PLAN) leaders being purged for “corruption” appear with striking […]

Tan Benhang, “Implications of the U.S. Navy’s ‘Sea Base’ Construction for Equipment Support in Cross-Sea Landing Operations,” CMSI Translation 22 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 11 August 2025).

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From CMSI Director CAPT Christopher H. Sharman, USN (Ret.):
China Navy and Marine Watchers:
China’s military seeks to become world-class […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “How Will China’s National Power Evolve Vis-à-vis the United States?” in Maria Adele Carrai, Jennifer Rudolph, and Michael Szonyi, eds., The China Questions 2: Critical Insights into U.S.-China Relations (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2025), 161–70.

The United States and China increasingly differ in their national systems, interests, and objectives. Never before have they been powerful […]

Maria Adele Carrai, Jennifer Rudolph, and Michael Szonyi, eds., The China Questions 2: Critical Insights into U.S.-China Relations (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2025).

INFORMATION ON VOLUME RELEASED IN PAPERBACK
Maria Adele Carrai, Jennifer Rudolph, and Michael Szonyi, eds., The China Questions 2: Critical Insights into U.S.-China Relations (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2025).

About the Editors

Maria Adele Carrai specializes in the history of […]

Julia Famularo, Great Inspectations: PRC Maritime Law Enforcement Operations in the Taiwan Strait, China Maritime Report 48 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 16 July 2025).

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From CMSI Director Christopher Sharman:
China Maritime Watchers: People’s Republic of China (PRC) maritime law enforcement operations function as forms of cognitive […]

Cai Qingjian, Miao Pingyi, and Bao Hanliang, “How to Achieve a ‘Soft Landing’ for New Recruits Joining Companies,” CMSI Translation 21 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 10 July 2025).
News Observation on an Eastern Theater Command Navy Group’s Innovative Education of New Recruits

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From CMSI Director CAPT […]

Teng Hao, Yang Liu, and Liu Zihao, “Spring Breeze Accompanies Us As We Strive Forward,” CMSI Translation 20 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 10 July 2025).
Stories of a Northern Theater Command Navy coastal defense missile regiment doing a good job educating and managing new recruits in the spring enlistment period by […]

Since Xi assumed power in 2012, an extraordinary array of flag and general officers, as well as defense industry leaders, has been removed. By my running tally, this includes:

15+ senior military officials & defense industry executives.
8 CMC members, including Vice Chairman General He Weidong.
15+ military deputies to National People’s Congress (since March 2023 alone).
79+ senior […]

Andrew S. Erickson, “L’humain, nouveau moteur de la puissance navale chinoise” [People, The New Engine of Chinese Naval Power], Marine & Océans Magazine 287 (Juin [June] 2025): 16–19.

Former pour dominer: Pékin investit dans l’humain pour renforcer sa puissance navale. En mai dernier, le China Maritime Studies Institute – un institut américain spécialisé dans l’analyse des […]

Hollie McKay, “Beijing’s Rare Disclosure on DF-5B Missile Signals Shift in Nuclear Messaging,” The Cipher Brief, 30 June 2025.

“While the original DF-5 missile, developed during the Cold War, was outfitted with a single warhead, the DF-5B’s multi-warhead capacity—alongside its purported accuracy within 500 meters—represents a significant leap in China’s second-strike capability and nuclear survivability.”
“Andrew Erickson, […]

As we wind through the Year of the Snake, China under Xi is steaming full speed ahead, particularly at sea. Navigate troubled Indo-Pacific waters by consulting the latest version of Modern Chinese Maritime Forces, released today! This most recent iteration of the Second Edition includes sections for PLA Army (pp. 63–75) and PLA Air Force […]

Andrew S. Erickson and Christopher H. Sharman, “PLAN Chief of Staff VADM Li Hanjun: Fast-Rising Star of Training and Education Extinguished,” CMSI Note 15 (Newport, RI: Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, 30 June 2025).

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A CACHED PDF COPY.
From CMSI Director Christopher Sharman:
China Navy Watchers: Another senior People’s Liberation Army Navy […]

Ryan D. Martinson, “Exposed Undersea: PLA Navy Officer Reflections on China’s Not-So-Silent Service,” Center for International Maritime Security (CIMSEC), 24 June 2025.

From CMSI Director CAPT Christopher H. Sharman, USN (Ret.):
What do PLAN officers tell themselves about the capabilities of U.S. undersea surveillance systems? What are the acoustic vulnerabilities of PLAN submarines? Moreover, how should the PLAN […]

Thanks to Brian Kerg and CIMSEC for a great opportunity!
Honored that “Chinese Amphibious Warfare” has been named the Samuel B. Griffith Foundation’s 2025 Publication of the Year and selected for the Commandant of the Marine Corps Professional Reading Program’s 2025 Reading List.

Download a free copy here!
I’ve summarized our book’s key findings in The Diplomat. Click […]