Gray zone activities refer to provocative actions that are not so egregious they would demand a warlike response, but neither are they of a peaceful nature. Bringing clarity to China’s gray zone activities would dispel the “ambiguity” around the term itself, Australian think tank the Lowy Institute says. The phrase “gray zone” is open to misinterpretation, and allows for a degree of doubt regarding Beijing’s original intentions, it says. It is not just the Philippines that has been the target of China’s coercive behavior. Manila, sensing the power of the name game, also decided to use its own for the parts of the South China Sea it claims.
