Gunboat Diplomacy Meaning

(idiomatic) The pursuit of foreign policy objectives with the aid of conspicuous displays of military power.

Example: 1956 Dec. 3, Acclaim & Misgivings, Time:
  The British and French, who had sought to make policy by reviving 19th century gunboat diplomacy, had temporarily lost their credentials for world statesmanship.
2004 Feb, 21, Yan Hua, China warns Taiwan with military exercises, Asia Times Online (retrieved 23 March 2015):
  China has ratcheted up its standard gunboat diplomacy—the repeated warnings that it would use force if necessary to unite the island and mainland—more than a month before Taiwanese voters go to the polls.