They are also mindful of the need to avoid the paths that Japan and Germany took. The rise of Germany and Japan resulted in a competition in Europe and Asia respectively for power, influence and resources that led to two terrible wars in the 20th century, and ultimately ended their rise. If China gets involved in a war, it risks internal disturbance, clashes and disorder, and it may go down again – perhaps for a long time. So, for the Chinese, the rational calculation would be, “We’ve waited so long for this opportunity to catch up with the developed world. Why be in a hurry and jeopardise our
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