An embarrassing Russian defeat a century ago is a warning about the risks of losing a war to China now, top US Air Force official says

• In May 1905, Russia's navy suffered a resounding defeat by the Japanese at the Battle of Tsushima.
• It sealed Japan's victory in the Russo-Japanese War and eliminated much of Russia's influence in Asia.
• The battle is a lesson about complacency in the face of new threats, a top US Air Force official says.

A devastating naval defeat 118 years ago blunted a major European power's ambitions in Asia and marked the emergence of a newly dominant Asian military.