TIME TO GET READY: Part One: Consequences of America Losing a War to China

In July The National Interest published an essay entitled “Can America Lose to China?” written by Kishore Mahbubani, a fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Asia Research Institute and a former Singapore UN Ambassador.

The essay focuses on the China-U.S. political, economic and social competition. Mahbubani begins with an observation: Americans believe “an open society like America has many natural advantages” over China’s autocracy. By assuming inherent advantage, “Americans cannot even conceive of the possibility of losing out to China.”

That may well be true, though not quite in the way he frames the problem.

More:

It is foolish to believe an intense war involving China and the U.S. would be confined to the Taiwan Strait and end with Taiwan’s loss. In the scenario, missiles hit regional U.S. bases –meaning Japan, South Korea, Guam, perhaps Australia, Singapore and Hawaii.

Go a step farther. What keeps this western Pacific war from escalating to a war for national survival?

Part Two (next week) will examine several very uncomfortable consequences of America losing a war to China. Stay tuned.