Letter from the editor

摘要

Dear Reader, Welcome to the first issue of BATTLESPACE for 2020, albeit in pdf form! COVID-19 has ripped through the world’s community destroying jobs, livelihoods and killing many thousands of people. The virus has caused the demise of the majority of all defence conferences and exhibitions, certainly in the first half of the year. However, in response to a piece in the FT by Helen Worrall, defence is not in retreat and is entering a new phase in the Chinese – US battle for world dominance. Defence is not in retreat due to COVID-19 but speeding up a process of change which began about ten years ago after the pull-out from Afghanistan. In our opinion, a war in the South China Sea is now inevitable as companies pull out of China and either rebase back home or relocate to other parts of Asia.