Monday, June 1, 2015
Americans get some unusual appreciation from the Indians (dot).
Witness America’s challenging of China in the South China Sea, which, by the way, is a giant favour being done — for free — to Japan, Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines,Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Taiwan, Indonesia, and, yes, India.
China is the anti-America: its political assertions are based entirely on what’s in China’s national and material interest, with not an underlying iota of universal principle in play. It is monumentally selfish. With breathtaking illegality, China is building artificial islands on reefs in the South China Sea so as to widen its zones of maritime monopoly. All of this is in violation of international law, but does Beijing care? Silly question!
America cares. And we should be grateful that it cares. Yes, it’s asserting its own might by sailing naval vessels into waters that China wishes to sinicize, and it is buzzing Chinese installations with its aircraft. Yet these aren’t assertions merely of American heft. They are statements of law, and lawfulness, and assertions of rights: not just American rights, but rights that all nations have, including India, to freedom of navigation, and to protection from forcible seizure by one State of large chunks of the global commons.
Thanks, guys. It's nice to see that the efforts made are seen, properly, as a benefit to all.
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I think that the nations who fear China's expansion and bullying appreciate America. They appreciated us when we stood against the Japanese in the same stretch of Planet Earth. But sometimes they forget...
ReplyDeleteThey will remember when we are gone and the tyrants run rampant and unopposed.
DeleteSo, China bases it's actions on what is in China's best interests. The US trots around the globe wasting blood and gold meddling in matters that are none of our business. It is well past time to start looking out for our own interests and letting the rest of the world deal with their own problems.
ReplyDeleteWell, the other side of that coin is that it is of great benefit to us, and everyone, to establish a system of international law to resolve disputes, as well as norms of behavior that all nations should follow. Usually, that results in much more economic activity benefiting everyone, and many fewer disputes that lead to violence. The downside is as the leader, we have to enforce the code occasionally when someone, like China or Russia, wants to just bully everyone to do it their way. It does require the expenditure of treasure and blood sometimes, but to do nothing and be a bully like the Chinese also requires the expenditure of blood and treasure, and usually at a higher rate as conflicts become much bigger and more frequent. Without laws and norms most agree to follow, economic activity slows, making everyone poorer, which the Chinese are about to learn if they incite violence over the South China Sea.
DeleteWe tried to ignore the rest of the world before WWI and II, but in the end couldn't. Conflict will happen,so we might as well try to keep it as much as possible on our own terms. Drawing the line at where we will invest blood/treasure is always controversial, but there is a line which must be drawn by someone, and history teaches us that it isn't on our borders.