When Russia is not flexing its muscles, China is often the focus of incidents on the world stage.
There are more people in China than any other country, and its economic growth has been nothing short of astounding. And it is widely suspected that China wants to turn its economic might into other kinds of power. Geoff Dyer is a former Beijing bureau chief for a western publication; he writes of the potential struggle in The Contest of the Century: The New Era of Competition with China--and How America Can Win.