The fate of the Indo-Pacific century will be decided on the seas off the coast of China

The axis of the coming world is not actually a line, but rather a broad arc that we could locate in Indochina, extending into Indonesia: it runs between India and China, between their historic spheres of influence in the south and east of the Asian continent, and stretches along the coast where the Indian and Pacific Oceans meet. But the axis is not the defining feature; rather, it is what constitutes the perimeter of that new world. Juan Luis López Aranguren’s book divides these two realities into two maps: the one on the cover, which depicts the Indo-Pacific as we imagine it when we hear that term (the combined expanse of the two oceans), and the one spread across a double-page spread inside (the land that surrounds them). This latter map is the true world of the Indo-Pacific: the vast arc of countries stretching from Cape Town to Cape Horn, with Australia at its center. Far more all-encompassing than the Atlantic context—the axis of yesterday’s world—the new outline leaves few regions of the planet outside its bounds, and Europe is one of them.

While the term “Asia-Pacific,” as it has been used until now, often limited its meaning to the eastern coast of Asia (using “Pacific” as an adjective rather than plenary session of the Executive Council ), we must not make the same mistake with the term “Indo-Pacific”: we are talking not only about Asia, but also about Mozambique, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Canada, the United States, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, Peru, Chile, and New Zealand, for example. It has been said that the 21st century is the century of Asia, but if we follow that logic, we should rather say that it is the century of the Indo-Pacific and all that it encompasses. In any case, the new international reality is taking shape in a smaller area: the seas to which eastern and southern China open up—where South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia are located—and it is these dynamics that the book focuses on most closely.

The work of López Aranguren, a professor of International Public Law International Relations specializing in Asia, strikes an interesting balance between the essay and the popularizer’s engaging narrative, ensuring that readers of both genres find equal satisfaction. It is grade the author has thoroughly internalized the theories of geopolitics, enabling him to explain them simply in his classes; with an intellectual curiosity about a wide variety of topics, he knows how to handle small details—often in grade —that, while providing a breather, still hold the reader’s attention.

“The Axis of the Coming World” begins with fundamental principles and ideas, transforming that speculative framework into something far more vivid—such as when it refers to land powers as elephants and sea powers as whales (a basic distinction for understanding the interaction between nations over the centuries) or summarizes the contributions of the leading thinkers in this field (from Mackinder and Mahan to Fukuyama, Nye, and Mearsheimer). Having laid out the instructions, López Aranguren delves into the issues governing the dynamics of international relations at this defining moment in the shaping of a new world order, with an emphasis on the Indo-Pacific.

The most complex issues, such as the nuclear standoff, or the more subtle ones, such as the difference between cooperation, competition, containment, and conflict, are explained with simple clarity, financial aid familiar examples, such as the lyrics of some songs from recent decades. And there is always room for digressions that are not merely anecdotal, such as China’s “panda diplomacy” or the “Samson option” that Taiwan might resort to if Beijing launched an invasion (the attack on the Three Gorges Dam; if Chinese authorities were to begin draining it at any point, it could be a sign that they intend to go to war and cross the strait).

The hardcover edition of the book is beautifully crafted. Without any flashy design elements, its texture and weight make it an object that invites to be handled with care.