Newsletter 2013/10/29 – The Thucydides Trap
BERLIN/BEIJING (Own report) – The debate about possible military
confrontations between the West and the People’s Republic of China is
continuing in Berlin. Some experts believe that Western efforts “to
contain and retard China’s emergence” will not be limited to
“strengthening regional allies” in East and Southeast Asia, according
to a recent publication by the CSU-affiliated Hanns Seidel Foundation.
The United States could possibly become “embroiled in a direct
hegemonic conflict with China over the Asia Pacific region,” which
“most likely would include military involvement.” Germany is also
increasingly participating in the arming and training of the West’s
allies in Eastern and Southeastern Asia. An “intensification of the
security competition” in the Pacific region can, in any case, be
expected, even if it does not escalate into war, one political
scientist at the Bundeswehr University in Munich reaffirms. Last June,
the Federal College for Security Studies, the German government’s
central military policy think tank, examined China’s arms buildup and
discussed military conflict scenarios involving China.
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