The international political system has been dominated by Western ideas for much of human history. From the rule of the Greek city-states, to the Roman Empire, to the European colonial era, and most recently, the rule of the United States. The rest of the world developed largely in the shadow of this Western world despite showing significant events, such as early civilizations and Zheng He's expedition in the 15th century. The recent rise of China has generated a debate about the importance of the non-Western world. Driven by reforms, China has become the world's second largest economy and is expected to overtake the United States in the near future. With its growing economic size, there has been a commensurate increase in global status. However, it has attracted attention in terms of its status and intentions within a Western-defined international order, especially in its security and defense role. China attempts to allay these concerns, in part, by promoting a peaceful development thesis and publishing more information. China's latest Defense White Paper was released on April 16, 2013 and includes a preface, five specific chapters and a conclusion. The purpose of this paper is to critically analyze China's "peaceful rise"/"peaceful development" thesis in relation to the 2013 crisis. China Defense White Paper. This will be done by examining the preface and each of the sections subsequently and demonstrating that there are limited prospects for peaceful development from a theoretical and behavioral perspective. It will be demonstrated that China's peaceful development thesis has been undermined by the actions it is taking and the perceived shortcomings of the White Paper, both of which are giving impetus to…half of the document…securing China.” The Washington Quarterly 36, no. 2 (April 2013): 21–38. doi:10.1080/0163660X.2013.791080.Renner, Bastian. “Explaining the Senkaku Islands Dispute: The” (2013). Simon, Sheldon W. “Conflict and Diplomacy in the South China Sea: Washington's View.” Asian Survey 52, no. 6 (2012): 995–1018. Tellis, Ashley J. “Uphill Challenges: China's Military Modernization and Asian Security.” In strategic Asia 2012-2013: China's military challenge. Washington, DC: National Bureau of Asian Research, 2012. Tiefeng, Xiao. “Misconceptions About China’s Military Spending Growth.” Carnegieendowment.org. Accessed May 27, 2014. http://carnegieendowment.org/2013/05/28/misconceptions-about-china-s-growth-in-military-spending/g76a.Yue, Jianyong. “China's Peaceful Rise: Myth or Reality?” International Politics 45, no. 4 (July 2008): 439–456. doi:10.1057/ip.2008.13.