The Answer is Yes...
CFR has a backgrounder asking if China is a regional threat. Talk about a softball! It's a good Q & A anyway covering the basics and coloring within the lines to give us a more complete picture of the Chinese buildup. Among the nuggets found - China spends two to three times than its announced $30 billion on defense, its military can challenge the US, the lifting of the European arms embargo will only help, and a Red major general expressed a willingness to nuke the US. Nothing revolutionary but its great to find it all in one place. The only failure is in the end where policy prescriptions for the US are suggested. What is offered is nothing but vague diplospeak.
posted by theCardinal @ 9:43 PM
3 Comments:
Re China, "The country’s first priority is economic development, experts say. It is trying to spread the gains of its “economic miracle”—the economy has grown at about 9 percent per year for the last two decades—to more of its citizens. The domestic goal is social stability above all, experts say."
In this connection, China will doubtless be searching for the best way to establish economic connectivity globally. A multilateral alliance of NATO and the Shanghai Cooperation Agreement may help.
It would be a surprise. The US would like to observe future maneuvers but since the SCO was designed as a counterweight to the US an alliance with NATO seems unlikely.
Things could change with the addition of India. If India does in fact join it could be the hinge state between the US and the SCO. It would be interesting to see if the current SCO states want India to sway towards them or if they geniunely welcome the moderating influence that it would bring.
No doubt NATO and the SCO will grow and grow. Under the umbrella of the United Nations system, these international security alliances will eventually be able to operate with new money from the IMF instead of depending on the largesse of national taxpayers. The present funding arrangements for NATO and the UN, for example, are a huge obstacle to international order.
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