In the space of a month or so, war with China has gone from being the stuff of paranoid science fiction plots to a serious political topic.

But how seriously should the rest of us take it?

Today on The Signal, we ask why we're suddenly discussing a war with the world's biggest military.

And if it ever did happen, how would our own military strength and the strength of our allies measure up?

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Dr Bates Gill, Professor of Asia Pacific Security Studies at Macquarie University