You Take Hawaii East, We'll Take Hawaii West

US Navy Adm. Timothy Keating describes a glib comment by a Chinese military official during the Admiral visit to China after assuming command of Pacific Command:

---

With a straight face, Chinese officer said, “As we develop our aircraft carriers,” — a remark Keating said he found interesting in itself — “why don’t we reach an agreement, you and I?” Then came the Chinese proposal: “You take Hawaii east. We’ll take Hawaii west. We’ll share information, and we’ll save you all the trouble of deploying your naval forces west of Hawaii.”[FIDSNS]

---