Like “Game of Thrones,” scholars and analysts alike have spoken of the spectre of a Sino-US confrontation. This book falls in this genre but with a twist: it tries to explain why and when China will begin its assault of those with which the US prides itself on in Asia. Namely the alliance system, the promotion of free trade, a liberal democratic order, and a generally friendly attitude to the presence of US in the region. All that will change and is being undermined by the growing ascent of China. Why?
Aaron Friedberg, a one-time senior advice to Vice President Dick Cheney, argued that China is catching up on the military, economic and technological fronts. It is a matter of time, before China reasserts itself. In this sense, Aaron Friedberg is right to ascribe such motives to China. As a former imperial power, that believes in what David Kang called the “hierarchical ordering of the region,” China wants to be the proverbial top dog in Asia, especially granted the importance by which it placed on East and South China Sea.
Since the US wants the right to exercise the freedom of navigation in these areas, the twain shall meet, and clash over a variety of issues i.e. Taiwan, theater missile defense, Tibet, Tiananmen Square i.e. Human Rights, indeed, the speed of US’s technology transfer to China on climate change, and ultimately the value of US Treasury Bills, which China has held at more than 1.3 trillion.