China is not just a country. It is only one of very few states to be considered continent-scale nations, but China is by far the biggest of them all. USA is genuinely another but albeit around quarter the magnitude of China, by population. Russia and Australia have the land but not the population to be true continent states and India has the population but not land mass and overall development to be considered one either. If European Union is considered a single state, then that would also qualify, but alas they aren't really.
China is the biggest of all continent states when factoring in land, population, economy, technology and development but it is not even a fraction to being at full capacity. Even though China is already ahead of US, in real terms, economically, we have only scratched the surface of what China can be and wants to be. Passing the US is a big milestone but China always had loftier goals than just to be better than US.
The US being like all hegemonic states that have gone before them want to delay or curb the rise of any rising power, which is what is happening now. The US is using dopes, like the Philippines, as a buffer state, because Philippines is not smart enough to realise when the geopolitical winds of power are shifting and they feel they are safe, as long as they stay shacked up in the house the US built for them. Philippines are going to be USA's first sacrificial lamb, if they don't get wise fast. USA will never intervene directly with a major nuclear power and nor will China. It's dope nations, like Vietnam and Philippines, that end up being battlegrounds for proxy wars, and they always suffer the most.
Pinoys need to get some perspective when they deal with goliaths they aren't equipped to deal with!
