The U.S. has finally sent a ship into the 12-mile limit around the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. This had to come eventually, since we don't accept China's claim on the huge area they claim between China and Malaysia. The Wall Street Journal article on this said that claim was similar to Mexico claiming the Gulf of Mexico. We don't recognize it.
What we forgot in this discussion was that China has already staked its claim, built up the islands from nothing, and sailed five ships into U.S. territorial waters on the very day that the President of the U.S. was in Alaska, only a short missile distance away. It must have been alarming to have warships that close to Air Force One. They did that in the first days of September. This is in-your-face diplomacy at its best.
We did nothing while they built the islands, and next to nothing until the Chinese put artillery on one of them. We challenged that and the Chinese either hid the pieces or voted them off the island. We threatened sanctions, but none have materialized. And......there is cyber. The Chinese must be manning our China Desk at the State Department. We know the Russians are reading their e-mail. Both of them are anticipating our every move because they know what we are going to do.
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