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How much of a military threat is China to Japan?

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Zero threat. Can anyone prove otherwise? I'm not looking for hypothetical "what if's".

3 ( +6 / -3 )

At the moment, not at all. In the future? That depends on your fact-based detailed analysis. But if you don't have time for research, I suppose rampant Sinophobia will do.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

China will become a "threat" only when it is threatened. Abe is doing a great job in creating that threat.

2 ( +8 / -6 )

China looks unlikely to be any more successful in dethroning U.S. from global leadership than Japan and Russia were. This is partly due to limits on China’s ability to continue advancing. China’s disputes with neighbors over the disposition of minor islands and reefs in East and South China Seas shows how little real potential for growth in territories the way other western powers have. Problem with China is that within a few years, the working age population will reach a peak and then begin a sharp decline. China has followed the same footstep as Japan in using trade as main springboard to economic development. Unfortunately, now they are so dependent on offshore resources, markets and investors to keep its economy growing that it can’t run the risk of really scaring its trading partners.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

China will become a "threat" only when it is threatened. Abe is doing a great job in creating that threat.

Huh? In what way is Abe being more threatening than the Chinese are? I don't like Abe either, but it's absurd to think that the leadership in China perceives Japan as a military threat. They are happy to drum up fear of Japan among the masses for domestic political gain, but you can be sure they don't believe a word of it themselves.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

China is a military threat to every country; not only to Japan. A country that already has the largest military in the world and has increased its military budget by double-digit figures every year for 23 straight years does not have such a military for "peaceful purposes."

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

@A Realist: I mean this respectfully, but there's no evidence that China has anything but "peaceful purposes". China may not like Japan, generally speaking, but there's no particular malice there.

That said, America has a huge military with the highest military budget in the world, spending roughly as much as the next 8 countries combined. Furthermore, American has more or less been involved in conflict/war about 93% of it's entire history. (That's 222 years of it's 239 year history.)

Yet, many countries don't consider America a threat (nor should they, generally speaking). Why can't it be the same for China?

2 ( +3 / -1 )

A country that already has the largest military in the world and has increased its military budget by double-digit figures every year for 23 straight years does not have such a military for "peaceful purposes."

I'm no fan of Beijing, but what about the bellowing, rabid elephant in the room?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Why would either country want to go to war with the other? Japan cannot defeat China and if China has ideas on Japan then America is involved. Zero threat in my opinion. Occasionaly some politician trying to make a name for himself will blather on but reality is no war is coming. The days of one country taking over another and remaking it in it's own image dissapeared a many decades ago. The last failed effort was the US trying to bring a dubious form of democracy to the ME. And look how that turned out.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

@Whoever thumbed down my above:

Do you honestly believe that in this day of drones, ICBMs and a scenario of Total Annihilation should China attack Japan...that it would? I mean, why waste the human lives in a conflict where it would be such a bloodbath? And why risk that AND a huge loss of revenue from some of its biggest trading partners?

This isn't like Russia and Ukraine here.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

How much of a military threat is China to Japan?

ABSOLUTELY NONE!

Why on Earth would China invade Japan?

What could they possibly gain from it?

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Why is China building up such a big military?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Mister Ed,

Why is China building up such a big military?

To counter the threat from the U.S.A. and Japan?

The US defence budget is SIX times China's.

One could also ask why the US needs such a big military.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Well, Japan is threatening anyone, so it must be the USA alone then.

Serious question, what is the USA doing to threaten China and why?

I have no idea why the USA needs such a big military budget, nor why it is even on this side of the Pacific in the first place.

It must be very afraid of something. Or just aggressive by nature.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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