[Paul Ross]

Both the US and Japan, along with many other world powers, have aggressively expanded their maritime capabilities...

Japan has, to be sure. But the U.S. Navy has been imploding under first Clinton, then Bush, and now under Obama. We have seen the Navy dismantle and use for target practice all of its anti-submarine warfare ships (the Spruances) and retired its ASW planes (S3-Bs) end its air-superiority F-14's which are not replaceable by F-18s. And of course Obama ended production capability for the USAF F-22, which means that there can never be a naval version now.

[aegiscg47]

Japan's navy is more than a match for the Chinese forces and it would be interesting to see what they would do if China did invade Taiwan. Especially if we stayed out of it!