[quote=FlyerInHi][quote=ucodegen]
China has been getting pushy with the Spratly Islands, the US has been tip-toe’ing around that too much.[/quote]
Tough talkers are so funny….
We don’t have standing to challenge China. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia do. They are only 2 ways to enable them. Do business with them or provide them with weapons. 2 things that Trump doesn’t want to do. Do you think they have incentives to antagonize their biggest trading partner, China?[/quote]
So you have the opinion that the strongest should be able to take whatever they want within their area of ‘influence’? Those three other nations have standing and brought it to international court. China lost but does not want to be bound by the decision. The Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia don’t stand much of a chance against China in a confrontation.
We actually do have standing because the area involved contains international shipping lanes that are used by the United States as well as several other nations. We also have standing because we and all other nations follow a 12 mile rule on maritime borders. Standing does not require trying to lay claim to the area. It may also involve trying to keep the area open for all to use – since it has historically been used that way before China’s invention of ownership.
