Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Australia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Japan already form a formidable string of concerned countries that block Chinese military ambitions.
And as I've mentioned many times, India is worried enough about China to quietly join the grouping:
A militarily capable India with a record for defense cooperation with the United States would give an aggressive, hegemonic China -- should that rogue elephant ever emerge -- great pause.
OK, don't call it an alliance. Call it two former British colonies, one global and the other going global, that are interested in maintaining peaceful, prosperous "equilibrium" conditions.
That's ok, don't call it an alliance. I don't assume China must be our future enemy, either. Though I'm not one to ignore the potential threat. And India on our side complicates China's problems a great deal.
The Coalition of the Worried (about China) isn't an alliance. Some have formal bilateral defense ties with us. Others don't but know we worry about the same threat. Even without a formal structure, our role holds the string together.
Our string of pearls is much more impressive and effective.
