Clinton snub marks new Sino-US rivalry

Clinton snub marks new Sino-US rivalry: Chinese leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping's snub of visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Beijing's harsh rebuff to soft US criticism on the Syrian crisis underlines China's increasingly assertive stance towards its sole competitor for global influence. China now has the clout to back up strong words, helped by a decade establishing economic ties around the world rather than building costly military bases. - Brendan O'Reilly (Sep 6, '12)