Addendum to the above post: Looks like many thought I was saying war is coming. Belligerence does not equate to open conflict.
It may lead to it but that’s beside the point. The reason the US can advance its interests better via the path of ‘we’ve got a bigger stick than you’ with China is that the EU won’t commit to either side in the trade ‘war’.
By being ‘neutral’ ( hard to swallow for allied nations that have helped Europe often at such great cost ), the EU allows China an escape hatch- they can still trade both their own mass produced goods & buy higher tech from Europe.
Limiting China geographically via the sale of arms to close neighbours is a win/win for the US. It’s arms manufacturers are happy ( The Abrams is a fantastic example as it has been made redundant as far as contemporary Western military doctrine goes- thanks to anti tank missile tech we are all headed toward wheeled, not tracked- vehicles. Yet the people of Ohio vote & the Lima Army tank plant where the Abrams is built is very important to them & so it is kept open ), the US gov. gets a few dollars from taxing them & it strengthens the position of the US relative to China.
Ah well- if any of us don’t want to read the open moves ( don’t even have to read between the lines at the moment ), then I guess that’s up to them.
If any of us thought that China building their sea bases etc ( revealing as always that they can not sustain their people on the food produced locally which is a massive disadvantage for true prosperity ), wasn’t going to provoke a response then I give up.
They’ve built isolated bases that will require ongoing & almost immediate support in the event of any hostility? Cool- we’ll block them on the sea with the Pacific fleet & more, then fence them in by arming their close neighbours.
West? Have fun trying to make truly meaningful headway in the Middle East where we already sit. Sth. West/Tibet etc? Cheers for giving our Indian ally an excuse to modernize & train up its army- also there is effectively only one single road/pathway to use if wishing to attack.
East? The unsinkable aircraft carrier that is Japan.
North? Go for your life.
Some will wonder about Africa? They’ve got to sneak arms through and so nothing much will make it there, besides which again- go for it. That place will ultimately eat them just as it has eaten every other people that has gone there before them, there is always a player who will be prepared to start trouble & balance things out if provided with arms.
(20min delay)