Editor’s Note

Editor’s Note: Jamestown is proud to present this special issue of China Brief on three unique aspects of Chinese energy security. Beijing has been forced to recalibrate its energy priorities to confront a complex set of challenges that include persistently high oil prices, rising domestic demand, uncertain shipment routes and long-term social health and environmental concerns. In the lead article, Wenran Jiang details Beijing’s “new thinking” on energy security policy that emerged from the National People’s Congress in March. The following two articles investigate key drivers of Chinese energy insecurity. First, Ian Storey underscores Beijing’s external anxiety about the vulnerability of its seaborne energy imports through the Lombok/Makassar and Malacca Straits, and details some of China’s proposed initiatives to mitigate shipping risk in Southeast Asia. With a view toward internal concerns, Peter Mattis provides a rich study on China’s reliance on coal—which is likely to remain the predominant component in China’s energy matrix—and explores its debilitating implications for economic and political reform, social health and environmental degradation.