China recently listed it’s latest piece of naval hardware (the aircraft carrier Liaoning) as being combat-ready and fully operational; an upgrade from its previous …
source
China recently listed it’s latest piece of naval hardware (the aircraft carrier Liaoning) as being combat-ready and fully operational; an upgrade from its previous …
source
All the more reason it might not be a bad idea to improve relations with Russia. Dat mustache tho ;)
I don't think China is going to be the cause of WWIII. As I see it, China's activity in the South-China Sea boils down to resources. Their government recognises that its ability to maintain power rests on raising the quality of life of its citizenry, especially as their relatively recent burgeoning middle class (and the various millionaires that sprung out of it) are looking to the West as a guide for living well. This requires resources. The PRC have multiple initiatives to secure them. Firstly, they are investing in Africa through aid in order to build mines. Secondly, they are purchasing agricultural land in fertile countries such as Australia to farm. Thirdly, they are building a space capability to get to the incredibly resource-rich asteroid belt. And fourthly, they are securing economic access to the oil and natural gas-rich South China Sea.
The problem is that they don't have much in the way of soft power, so their foray into the South China Sea is pure hard power. Throw in the fact that they perceive the last century as one of humiliation by the Western powers and add in that they are now a major global power but are being stymied by America in their every effort to do what America itself did when it became a major global power, and their response to an American-led effort to keep them out of the South-China Sea makes sense. Trump could easily be the circuit-breaker in this.