ABSTRACT
China is aware that promotion of its peaceful rise has raised widespread suspicions, hence, it has conflated it with peaceful development, which need not evoke fear or cause anxiety. However, China's displays of military force in the South China Sea have led the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) states to strengthen their individual and collective security, while enhancing their military cooperation with the US. US private sector firms and cyber security specialists have reported an onslaught of computer network intrusions that have originated in China, but the intelligence community cannot confirm who exactly was responsible'. China's image building efforts support a leading role for China in Asian and world affairs, which enjoys broad support from the Chinese people and various constituencies in China. Economic nationalism, security alliances, and political authoritarianism have shaped Asia, struggling against economic internationalism, multilateral institutions and democratization, the struggle is dialectical.
