Two years ago, we were honest enough to say that our nuclear tests were a response to the Chinese threat. The Chinese clucked angrily and some of our venerable China specialists said we shouldn't have annoyed them. There is no need to be soft. We can pursue common interests, there are plenty of those in our ever more complex world but we must stand firm and tough where conflicts of interest persist. The Chinese certainly understand power very well.
Power has an important place in the Chinese scheme of things.
It is central to China's security and prestige. Its language underlines China's foreign policy. We need not compete with China in possessing the quantitative attributes of power. The Chinese are way ahead. China's external influence is also much greater.