Defense Spending by Country

Global Firepower ^ | 2018 | Global Firepower

[Rockingham]

In Thucydides’ rationale, the terms glory and self-interest encompass the motives you prefer to rely on for explanation. As for the specific case of territorial expansion, Chairman Xi and his closest allies do not try to justify territorial expansion as a personal vanity project. Instead, they promote it to the regime and the public as part of reclaiming China’s rightful historical greatness. That in turn excites China’s public to rally around the regime in support of military expansion and possible adventurism.

[Zhang Fei]

[In Thucydides’ rationale, the terms glory and self-interest encompass the motives you prefer to rely on for explanation. As for the specific case of territorial expansion, Chairman Xi and his closest allies do not try to justify territorial expansion as a personal vanity project. Instead, they promote it to the regime and the public as part of reclaiming China’s rightful historical greatness. That in turn excites China’s public to rally around the regime in support of military expansion and possible adventurism.]

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That’s a given. I seriously doubt Alexander motivated his troops by telling them that their reward would be his name in neon lights for posterity.