It is no secret that China’s one burning ambition is to meet and eventually exceed the United States in…well, everything! Military might, global prestige, cultural influence, space exploration. They think they should be king of the hill, and they are going to try and claw their way to the top.
Of all the categories mentioned above, it is Chinese efforts to build up their military that most Western analysts find to be the most troubling. We would welcome it if a liberal democracy like, say, Canada would actually stop the slow slide into oblivion that they have decided is the future for their armed forces. But a totalitarian state like China? Not so much.