The Evolution of China's Sea Power Consciousness

The evolution of China's sea power consciousness is as follows:

1, from passive to active: the extension of coastal defense.

According to scholars' research, in the hundred years since the Opium War, western powers invaded China 84 times from the sea, invading more than 1860 ships and 470,000 troops. Foreign invasion often comes from the sea, which gives birth to the coastal defense concept of China social elite. Influenced by the idea that only offensive defense is effective defense, both the theory of "three lines of defense" and the theory of "two lines of defense inside and outside" advocate changing the "defensive defense" in the offshore area into "offensive defense" in the far sea.

2. From military to economy: the internationalization of sea power consciousness.

After the introduction of sea power theory, Chinese people's concept of sea power showed an international trend, which broke through the single military dimension in the past, extended their horizons to marine economy and trade, and even put forward the idea of rejuvenating the country through the sea. At that time, people pointed out that shipping is a necessary condition for a country's development and "the lifeblood of a country". All developed countries must be strong and backward countries must be weak "; Marine trade has become the lifeblood of national prosperity. "

3. Self-defense and peace: the constant pursuit of value.

Modern China people's concept of sea power has evolved, but the value demands of self-defense and peace have not changed, which is in the same strain as the peaceful tradition of Chinese civilization and is different from the expanding western culture. In China's traditional space concept of "the world", "flattening the world" is the highest level of life goal, and relying on the benevolent policy of "cultivating everything and transforming the world", it shows a kind of cosmopolitanism of "achieving the goal by virtue".