Replies

"China in turn is developing relationships with such virulently anti-American rogue states as Iran."

...And China is also developing much larger relationships (financially, politically, socially) with the U.S. (e.g. Wal-Mart), Britain, Taiwan, Japan, Australia, Canada, South America, etc.

In other words, China has not yet made its decision on which side it will finally choose.

China is fighting Islamic radicalism in its remote Xinjiang province even as we speak. That's the same enemy being fought by Russia in Chechnya and the U.S. in Iraq and Afghanistan (a border nation of China's).

So China *shares* a common enemy with the great world Powers of India, Russia, and the U.S. That's hardly a recipe for going to war *against* the U.S. or India, and even Krauthammer manages to see that China is exploring better ties with Russia. Hmmm...

China's newfound prosperity is due to its largest customer: the U.S.

Going to war against the U.S. wound *end* that prosperity.

This is not to say that China will 100% choose our side, but it is to say that China has viable incentives to choose our side.

China is at a cross-roads junction. It might choose to side with the terrorists, or China might choose to side with the U.S.

In the short-term, the smart money says that China will continue to straddle the fence. Some moves will be seen as hostile to the U.S., other moves will be seen to favor the U.S.

China simply hasn't decided to decisively choose one side or the other.

Yet.

China's newfound prosperity...

I remember reading a while back about the number of Chinese now able to afford cars and how there is no infrastructure to support this -- they lack everything from roads to gas stations.

What do you think of Russia becoming a major supplier of petroleum to China? And of the Chinese embracing the twenty first century sacred cow - the private automobile?

Once again it seems as though Pakistan is going to be a key player. Kerry's questioning of Condi on a subject she refused to address in an open session. Kerry did everything but turn to the cameras and say directly to our enemies, "Please, for the sake of the Democratic Party- take out Musharaf so I can look like a statesman and run again in 08".

China loves to play political games. I am surprised they don't dominate chess for whatever reason.

They will exterminate their internal Muslims, even peaceful, but will support any external Islamic terrorist, as long as they think the terror will benefit them.

I completely agree that they will continue their low key behavior, measuring and weighing our every move. Our MSM may be clueless about the message of strength Bush sends out, but Chinese will read him just fine.

Chinese business people, sort of a class of "rehabilitated kulaks" are being allowed to interact with Western businesses, in order to channel money in the PRC. Most of them were nobodies (a few princelings notwithstanding) prior to the onset of Deng Xiao Ping thought, which is the PRC's version of the NEP. Meanwhile, the ruling structures of the CCP and the PLA, continue to regard the US as enemy number one and the West as inferior to the Middle Kingdom, given its reputed "Mandate of Heaven." Once the cash infusions and direct foreign investment have allowed the PRC to fully develop her autobahns, blue water navy, and full strategic military capability, then the usefulness of these "sinic kulaks" will have been spent. At that time, the mask can be shed, and master plans revealed.

You're missing the point, it's not about China choosing the Terrorists or the U.S. China may well choose the US in that fight, but that would be no more than a temporary alliance a la US. USSR in WWII. China and the US are on a collison course, it is only a matter of time.

This is because China is well on its way to being the most powerful authoritarian nation in the world, and ultimately it and its alliance of autocratic regimes will find themselves at odds with the free world lead by the United States. These 2 incompatible systems cannot coexist.