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Indo-Pacifc region in order to encour- age a broader public debate over re- gional issues and foster opportunities for confdence building and diplomat- ic solutions. In the coming months, AMTI will continue to expand in scope. It will include new elements that allow us- ers to track commercial shipping in the region, monitor progress on the implementation of international agreements, and even track land rec- lamation and development efforts in the South China Sea. It will also con- vene leading experts from around the region to propose concrete and pragmatic solutions to these stubborn disputes, holding conferences and producing forward-looking policy pa- pers. These maritime tensions also pres- ent some opportunities for industry to play a positive role. Countries like the Philippines and Vietnam presently have modest naval, coast guard and intelligence capabilities, and will be investing in these areas heavily in the coming years. The United States is committed to helping these states build their capacity in these areas and to improving maritime domain aware- ness in the region to reduce the risk of surprise and accident. The private sector will be instrumental in furnish- ing the relevant technology. These are, however, long-term initiatives that will take many years to begin to bear fruit. In the near term, businesses that have an interest in prosperity and sta- bility in the Pacifc should work with think tanks and universities to pro- mote cooperation among states with competing maritime and territorial claims. This includes efforts that as- semble experts and leaders from states in the region to help to ease these ten- sions and assist the parties in moving towards dispute management. Marine and energy-related businesses will see their interests directly threatened if these tensions cannot be defused, and these industries make for ideal part- ners as we promote cooperation in maritime Asia. For industry and for the international community, the stakes couldn't be higher. n cur, and there has previously been no public, reliable authority in the region for information on maritime develop- ments. These mounting tensions present a serious conundrum for policymak- ers. The United States has called re- peatedly for all actors in the region to settle peacefully their disputes over territory and maritime boundar- ies, and encourages the use of inter- national legal mechanisms to do so. Many of the provocative actions that have occurred in the region in recent years constitute incremental coer- cion, as opposed to overt acts of war. This makes it particularly diffcult for the United States to intervene overtly against isolated acts at sea. Moreover, Washington aims to maintain strong political and economic ties with all states involved. If countries in the region continue to take seemingly discrete actions to seize or transform territory or maritime space in East Asia, however, the risk of accidental or inadvertent escalation to serious confict will continue to increase, and the political and economic status quo in the region may be in jeopardy. The seas and straits in this vital region will face increasing instability if all Pacifc nations fail to engage in serious efforts to build confdence and promote co- operation in the region. The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) seeks to change this by acting as a source for information on these vital issues. AMTI is an in- teractive website (http://amti.csis.org) that serves as a platform for regular news, analysis and policy exchange on maritime security issues in the Indo-Pacifc region. Conceived of and designed at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washing- ton, D.C., and launched in November 2014, the website allows users to ex- plore the latest regional developments using interactive maps, read original analysis from top experts in the U.S. and in Asia, view the long maritime history of the region using an interac- tive timeline, and explore relevant, annotated primary-source documents through a Documents Library. AMTI aims to promote transparency in the Dr. Mira Rapp-Hoop- er is a fellow with the Center for Strategic and International Studies' Asia Program and the director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initia- tive. Her research expertise includes mari- time security, security in East Asia, alliances, and U.S. foreign policy, and she holds a Ph.D. in political science from Columbia University. She can be reached at MRapp- Hooper@CSIS.org. T he center of gravity in world af- fairs has shifted to Asia. No other region will do more to determine whether the 21st century will be a peaceful and prosperous one. For this reason, it is imperative that Pacifc na- tions do everything in their power to reduce the risk of inadvertent or ac- cidental confict. The maritime environment in East Asia contains both promise and peril. The Indo-Pacifc region is host to some of the world's most important shipping lanes, facilitates huge volumes of re- gional trade, and boasts abundant nat- ural resources. Competing territorial claims, incidents between neighbor- ing countries, and increasing militari- zation, however, raise the possibility that an isolated event at sea could be- come a geopolitical catastrophe. In the last several years, there have been several serious incidents between Japan and China over the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. In 2012, China pressured the Philippines into relinquishing con- trol over the Scarborough Shoal and has occupied the reef since 2012. In 2014, Sino-Vietnamese tensions rose to new heights when China deployed an oil rig near Vietnam's coast. In the South China Sea, several claim- ant states have been engaging in lightning-speed land reclamation and development activities, transforming reefs into apparent rocks and islands, and building facilities that may be- come small military bases on formerly desolate atolls. This is all occurring against a backdrop of informational opacity. Geography makes it diffcult to monitor events at sea as they oc- soap box Promise and Peril in Maritime Asia—Dr. Mira Rapp-Hooper www.sea-technology.com March 2015 / st 69