[coderenegade]

This. The century of shame, when Western powers came knocking on their door, is etched into the Chinese cultural psyche. East Asia was home to mature nations that learned the hard way that self determination is fundamentally tied to your ability to defend your interests. This is especially the case for China, which saw itself as the center of the universe.

The US won the cold war and came to believe they were untouchable. Private interests don't care about nation states, and there was more money to be made by selling the foundation of the West's security than there was in preserving it, especially since the enemy had been vanquished.