Friday, March 03, 2017

Rumors of War - Kings of the East

U.S. carrier puts on show of 'commitment', not power, in South China Sea | Reuters
UPI reports: "The USS Carl Vinson led a carrier strike group on Friday in waters some 400 nautical miles east of China's Hainan Island and northeast of the Paracels, the island chain occupied by Beijing since it seized control from Vietnam in the 1970s. China claims most of the South China Sea through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbors Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims. [...] Tension between the United States and China over trade and territory under U.S. President Donald Trump has been stepped up of late, with fear in the region that the South China Sea, vital to global trade, could become a battleground between the two rival powers."

Comment: I'm not sure anyone really knows what Trump's policies are. Perhaps that is a good thing. As long as China is guessing and confused about Trump's willingness to defend our Asian allies, they may think twice before taking any further actions to control the international waters of the South China Sea. 

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