China 'want to be number one' in the region

China “want to be number one and want to be treated that way within the region,” says UNSW Emeritus Professor of Politics Carl Thayer.

“They want the second-largest economy, they see themselves at some point becoming the greatest economy,” he told Sky News Australia.

“Already they have reached a quantitative advantage over the US, closing the qualitative gap in military terms.”

Professor Thayer said the example of Ukraine “frightens them”.

“A unified West – now working with allies in the East – can block that," he said.

“And China can’t show weakness because they’re seeing those pressures applied on Russia.

“And so, they’re pushing strong now to get us ... to back off.”

Видео China 'want to be number one' in the region канала Sky News Australia