Despite China’s territorial disputes with neighboring countries over islands islets, reefs and rocks in the East China Sea and South China Sea, it maintains a good leverage including strong bilateral ties with Cambodia, Laos, and Sri Lanka; a standing offer of “joint exploitation of the South China Sea for mutual benefit” directed at the Philippines and Vietnam; and the potential for a China-ASEAN FTA and a China-South Korea-Japan FTA as its counter-balance against the US-led TPPA.
Sa ulat ng US Navy, umabot sa 51 barkong pandigma nito ang dumaong sa iba’t ibang pantalan ng bansa noong 2010; 54 noong 2011; 88 noong 2012; at 72 sa unang hati pa lamang ng 2013 (Enero-Hulyo). Kasabay nito, magkakaroon ng malalaking deployment ng tropang militar sa iba’t ibang base at mala-baseng mga pasilidad sa Asia-Pacific, pangunahin sa Australia (Darwin), Singapore (Changi Bay) at South Korea (Jeju Island) sa serye ng mga “port visit,” pagsasanay-militar at iba pang aktibidad.