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| From today’s South China Morning Post |
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi “… urged Manila to
“… be aware of its responsibility, refrain from being distracted by its own self-interests, demonstrate its due commitment, and play a positive and constructive role in promoting regional peace and stability” as Asean chair.
Does that come across as bullying? Sure does to some.
The “Rules based order” that everyone is so obsessed with lately, is the post-war order that was birthed by the United States. The Marshall Plan, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, later the World Trade Organisation, the United Nations and its myriad bodies, Japan’s peace constitution, Germany’s peace constitution. All American ideas and ideals. And by any measure most magnanimous.
At the beginning China was the America and the West’s good ally. Until it wasn’t. It was allowed to join the WTO and abided by its rules, until it didn’t.
It loved the United Nations until it found against its expansive “9-dash” claims in 2019. Until it didn’t.
So now is pushing its “Golden Rules” for disputes in the South China Sea. Here’s hoping they are magnanimous.
Just looking at the United Nations alone, it’s extraordinary just how corrupted it’s become. With “human rights” bodies chaired by the likes of North Korea and Yemen. With an anti-Israel, anti Zionist obsession. A dysfunctional Security Council and a virtue-signalling General Assembly. The United Nations, founded and majority funded by the United States. Which one could forgive for getting tired of its nonsense.
