Ambassador Robert Blackwill

We could see that coming.

We watched it.

Why were we spectators?

Yeah, we were spectators.

Yeah, why?

I think we backed away from the danger of a collision with China.

And in that period, we were much stronger in naval forces in the South China Sea and so forth.

But we just let it happen.

our limp reaction to the 2014 Russian acquisition of Ukraine.

I have a great long list, but liberal internationalism became weaker and weaker in its expression.

And China, I think, was emboldened by that and has taken advantage of it.

The last few liberal internationalists

presidencies, I think would be unrecognizable to Harry Truman or to Jack Kennedy or to Scoop Jackson or to Dan Moynihan and so forth.

They have been weak in their reaction to the challenges that we face around the globe.

First, the first thing that one should say, since there's so much commentary, is that not one of the people who are writing foreign affairs articles and op-eds know what it means.

So it's all speculation.

Well, in order to know, since there's such a small circle, and it's smaller now than it was a month ago, it's such a small circle, it would be wonderful if we had penetrated the very inner workings of the five men who made decisions led by Xi Jinping.

Well, let me just say...

It is when a general is charged with leaking nuclear secrets to the Americans, well, hooray if it's actually true.

But there are a variety of other interpretations one could make in the Chinese government saying that.