[OneWingedShark]

Oil is China's weak spot. 90% of its oil imports must cross the Indian Ocean, and then transit the many straits and the South China Sea. China's Navy cannot hope to overcome the sea and air power than such an alliance could muster over those areas. And if defeated at sea, the Chinese would be forced to defend land routes to that oil, a thousand miles through the ‘stans and the Himalayas.

That sounds like a good strategy for the Anti-China Alliance.

[SampleMan]

Western China is mainly a big empty desert. To get from the nearest sizable Chinese city, Chengdu, to the Indian border is over 2000 miles supported by a single rail line and only two two-lane highways.

Most of it runs through mountainous terrain. A veritable playground for tactical attack aircraft flying under the radar, and SOF teams passing intel. Tibetan insurgents could be funded to bring down rock slides and avalanches.