China Review News (CRN) reported that the reason behind the heavy weight U.S. aircraft carrier dropping out of the Yellow Sea exercise was the result of risk assessment. The report believed that the U.S. did not want to “anger” China. It is also believed that China’s biggest advantage is its strong economy. Some Chinese military experts suggested that the aircraft carriers are the “last card” the U.S. can play, and the “U.S. cannot play the same card every day.” Another reason the report discussed was that Asia-Pacific countries welcome the United States less and less, because the U.S. economy is no longer the main engine that runs the economy of these countries.
Source: China Review News, August 21, 2010
http://gb.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1014/2/1/5/101421571.html?coluid=45&kindid=0&docid=101421571&mdate=0821085716