C-Max is about 300 pounds heavier than Prius v despite a smaller footprint, and has about the same amount of passenger space though a bit less cargo room.

FORBES: Ford C-Max Tries To Prey On Weaker Member of Prius Family

The downside, though, is that that cargo is housed behind glass, available for anyone to see and think about snatching.

CNN: Chevy Avalanche: Big truck for the real world

Trunk space is adequate with 13.1 cubic feet of space (12.5 with AWD), though the rear seatbacks do not fold flat to expand its cargo-carrying abilities.

FORBES: 2012 Acura TL Review: Balancing Act

For the moment, though, European and American security experts are more interested in another matter: what cargo a Russian vessel, Arctic Sea, was carrying when it vanished in closely monitored European waters, why a journalist who alerted the world to its disappearance had to flee Russia and why Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, paid an urgent and secret visit to Moscow just a few days later.

ECONOMIST: Russia's political leaders

Even though the value of the Manta air base lies more in the realm of trade (as a cargo transit point) than in the military, the air base's current U.S. military role means the potential impact on Sino-U.S. military relations cannot be ignored.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: China displaces the U.S. at Ecuador's Manta Base