Foreign Policy in Focus

Foreign Policy in Focus, "a think tank without walls," brings us a basic establishment paper on Taiwan and China.

....In a sense, both views are correct. China’s military power is growing, and there is a very real risk of conflict between the United States and China over Taiwan. On the other hand, there are good reasons to believe that a stronger, more prosperous China may, as the annual Pentagon report states, "choose a pathway of peaceful integration and benign competition."

I do not understand this point of view; it is rather naive. Are there examples in history of hegemonic powers becoming less inclined to use force as they grew in economic strength? I think history teaches quite the opposite.

[Taiwan] [China]