, Columnist
China’s High-Seas Game of Chicken Is Backfiring
The threat of a miscalculation spiraling into a larger conflict is growing.
One wrong move could ignite a much wider crisis.
Photographer: TED ALJIBE/AFP/Getty Images
China's military has long been accused of reckless behavior in the air and at sea. Last week’s collision between two of its vessels in the South China Sea underscores how a single miscalculation could spark a wider conflict.
At stake is the stability of the Indo-Pacific, a strategically important region for the US, where several of its partners, including Japan, the Philippines and Australia, are increasingly exposed to Beijing’s risky maneuvers.