Bob,

The shift to the Pacific is not about containment and great efforts are being made to prevent that perception. It isn't in our interest to contain, and as you pointed out it isn't possible. Detering aggression, protecting the commons, both enable economic growth which is in ours and other nations' interests.

I agree we have stated multiple times we are trying to contain AQ, which as you correctly pointed out is impossible. We won't deny safehaven, we won't easily, if ever, "counter" their ideology, etc., but in lieu of a better construct (help requested) we'll continue to default to those terms and the associated mentality. For AQ what are your recommendations? Defeat? Disrupt?