South China Sea and China (2011-2017)

[davidbfpo]

Carl,

Taken from your long post:

That is why you base your actions upon what they are capable of doing, will be capable of doing and what they are actually doing at the moment.

I prefer to use capability + intention to make an assessment.

In the case of the PRC, let alone the South China disputes, for a long time the PRC has had the capability to exert itself - as shown in the clashes with Vietnam long ago (1979 & 1988).

From faraway it looks like intention has been lacking and for reasons unclear to me this dispute has re-appeared.

A very partial, probably Vietnamese YouTube clip:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uy2ZrFphSmc

[carl]

I prefer to use capability + intention to make an assessment.

In the case of the PRC, let alone the South China disputes, for a long time the PRC has had the capability to exert itself - as shown in the clashes with Vietnam long ago (1979 & 1988).

From faraway it looks like intention has been lacking and for reasons unclear to me this dispute has re-appeared.

A difference now is they have a naval capability that is, I'm pretty sure, very much greater than they had before.