CWP alum's edited volume "Chinese Amphibious Warfare" named 2025 Publication of the Year by the Samuel B. Griffith Foundation for Chinese Military Studies
Purpose. To establish a list of recommended readings related to the legacy and scholarship of Brigadier General Samuel B. Griffith II, USMC (ret). This list will be reviewed by the Foundation annually and amended as needed to include key books, publications, and other media associated with Samuel Griffith’s life and studies.
Publication of the Year. For 2025, the Samuel B. Griffith Foundation has selected Study No. 8, Chinese Amphibious Warfare: Prospects for a Cross-Strait Invasion, edited by Dr. Andrew S. Erickson, Conor M. Kennedy, and Ryan D. Martinson (2024). This conference volume draws on insights from leading experts to examine Beijing’s pursuit of its ultimate strategic prize: Taiwan. Incisive, informative, and prescient, this publication examines the PLA’s progress toward Xi Jinping’s Taiwan-focused “Centennial Military Building Goal” for 2027, evaluates its prospects for success in a cross-Strait invasion, and outlines the steps Taiwan—with American support—must take to strengthen deterrence during this decade of maximum danger.
https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/cmsi-studies/8/
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Study No. 8, Chinese Amphibious Warfare: Prospects for a Cross-Strait Invasion: Through concerted efforts over the past quarter-century, the People's Republic of China has achieved the most dramatic military buildup since World War II. Previously limited in its ability to conduct its Joint Firepower Strike, Joint Blockade, and Joint Island Landing Campaigns against Taiwan, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is making rapid progress across the board as it prepares to meet the requirements of Xi Jinping’s Taiwan-focused Centennial Military Building Goal of 2027. Drawing on research, writing, and insights from some of the world’s leading experts, CMSI’s latest edited conference volume probes key questions concerning Beijing’s determined pursuit of the Chinese Communist Party’s ultimate political and strategic prize: How might the PLA attempt to execute a Joint Island Landing Campaign to achieve a cross-Strait invasion of Taiwan, what might be its prospects for success, and what must Taiwan—with American support—do urgently to shore up deterrence? The findings are nuanced but bracing. The saving grace, till now, is that Taiwan enjoys formidable defensive geography, and a large-scale amphibious invasion is one of the most difficult military operations to accomplish. However, under Xi’s concerted directives, China’s military is reforming relentlessly, bringing critical new capabilities to bear, and training tirelessly to improve its ability to carry out the operations on which it is bore-sighted. The stakes could scarcely be higher, and the clock is ticking.
Samuel B. Griffith Foundation for Chinese Military Studies: In honor of Brigadier General Samuel B. Griffith, II, USMC (Ret.), whose distinguished service and contributions to the field embody the ideal of the “warrior-scholar,” we champion the education of active-duty personnel, reservists, and veterans who, regardless of rank or affiliation, exhibit an unwavering commitment in their pursuit of understanding the Chinese military.
Dr. Andrew S. Erickson (艾立信) is Professor of Strategy (tenured full professor) in NWC’s China Maritime Studies Institute. A core founding member, he helped establish CMSI and stand it up officially in 2006 and has played an integral role in its development; from 2021–23 he served as Research Director. CMSI inspired the creation of other research centers, which he has advised and supported; he is a China Aerospace Studies Institute Associate. Since 2008 he has been an Associate in Research at Harvard’s Fairbank Center. Erickson has taught courses at NWC and Yonsei University, advises NWC student research and curricula and supports NWC’s scholarly research relations with Japanese counterparts.
Photo Credit: https://cwp.sipa.columbia.edu/news/study-no-8-chinese-amphibious-warfare-prospects-cross-strait-invasion-cwp-alum-andrew-erickson
