China's Long Arm

As part of the BBC World Service's Ruling China season, China's Long Arm comprises two series of two programmes each.

Programmes 1 and 2 look at China's military expansion.

Programmes 3 and 4 charts how China is becoming a key player in the world through its hunt for natural resources.

Programme 2: China's military expansion and Taiwan

As Chinese influence spreads around the world, Maurice Walsh explores the likelihood of Washington and Beijing finding themselves in conflict.

Taiwan remains a possible military flashpoint, and each year the Taiwanese naval, air and land forces hold widely publicised exercises to prepare them for any attempted invasion from mainland China.

This programme considers whether China might use its growing military power to reclaim Taiwan, possibly provoking a confrontation between China and the United States.

The military build-up in the Pacific parallels the growing economic challenge posed by China and evokes powerful memories of an earlier era of super-power rivalry.