Senator John McCain, the leading contender for the Republican Party's presidential nomination, has written that the US "must take note" of China's military threats and "warlike rhetoric" toward Taiwan.
McCain wrote in the journal Foreign Affairs late last year that while China's rise will be a top challenge for the next president, the two countries are not destined to be adversaries.
"China's newfound power implies responsibilities," McCain said.
McCain said that China should "behave as a responsible economic partner," guarantee the safety of its products and abandon "its go-it-alone approach to world energy supplies."
US lawmakers assert that China has failed to live up to its role as an emerging superpower; they are considering legislation that would punish China for what they contend to be predatory trade practices.
McCain has urged China to explain its military buildup. The US, he said, "must take note" when China "threatens democratic Taiwan with a massive arsenal of missiles and warlike rhetoric."
"When China enjoys close economic and diplomatic relations with pariah states such as Burma, Sudan and Zimbabwe, tension will result," McCain wrote in Foreign Affairs.
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