"Only China is an arguable peer of the United States, only China’s technological and industrial might can hope to match our own, and only China has the capacity to project power globally as well as regionally."

"China offers a somewhat coherent ideological alternative to the liberal-democratic order."

"China’s one-party meritocracy can advertise itself (...) as a successor to democratic capitalism, an alternative model for the developing world."

"The establishment of Chinese military pre-eminence in East Asia would be a unique geopolitical shock, with dire effects on the viability of America’s alliance systems (...) and on our ability to maintain the global trading system that undergirds our prosperity at home."