Diplomatic Signals

The contours of Chinas soft power profile include Chinese loans, infrastructure projects and an official position in the debate for socio political and economic orders.

China can learn from Germany's miscalculations in military aggrandizement. Your neighbours always respond. They don't want to be provoked.

For China, the choice is between economic might and a muted military profile, and military aggramdizement and the arms race and rebalancing that come with it.

Power is organised around the strongest poles. Economic and military heft create the gravity of the poles.

Nuclear weapons have not stopped nuclear armed states from military adventures against states without nuclear Arms.

Collective security systems involve all the nations of the earth while Collective Defense systems are exclusive and are designed to respond to a specified threat.

Supranational institutions sit above and govern nations while international institutions do not have political powers that override the national will.

Policies can have both realist and idealist intentions and consequences that may or may not respect the inclinations of their creator.

If the world is a playground, the bug bully holds considerable sway. These kids are a little smart, however, because they will gang uo to balance against te strength of the bully.

The world is anarchic and states use power to ensure their security, first and foremost.