...and a few days ago Washington gave Beijing its cold shoulder when they protested against U.S.-ROK navy manoeuvres in their backyard.

It takes much more to prove your point because you made a quite far-reaching statement, JMA.



Almost all states have major troubles and challenges, and almost all states have to consider the position of other governments in international issues.
That's life. Even Washington woke up and understood it's not really that much "exceptional" as it believed.

Nevertheless, some states are in greater troubles and especially in other forms of troubles than others. The predominant form of troubles are domestic troubles - that's good news, for domestic troubles can be addressed and solved with good policies.