Beijing's conspicuously restrained response to the United States and Israel's devastation of Iran's leadership and military capabilities has sparked debate over the impact on China's credibility among allies. Some claim, just as they did after the U.S. capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, that this inaction has exposed impotence in the face of its U.S. rival’s global power-projection capabilities—and the limits of Beijing’s efforts to make inroads into Washington’s influence