[astebbin]

>I think many Americans are hoping China tries to take a leadership role in Asia and near neighbors

Could you elaborate on this? My impression was that China has recently been bullying its neighbors, particularly Vietnam and to some extent the Philippines, over oil and gas deposits in the South China Sea. I can't imagine that's great for regional stability.

I also wonder if many Americans would want China to take on a leadership role with respect to Taiwan. I doubt the Taiwanese would take such a view.

[Leary]

Border tensions is only a minor part of life in Asia, one that is over reported by western media. Trade and infrastructure are more important concerns.

[rando_supreme]

I don't mean to call you out... but for an 11 day old account, you seem to have a fair amount of pro China trolling material posted.

Why would border tensions be "over reported." It's a matter of allied sovereignty?

[simmanian]

Could you elaborate? My take is that border tensions are definitely related to trade and it's not taken lightly by any Asian nation.

[jewelthief91]

How do the American people benefit from protecting Vietnam and the Philippines? Not to sound trollish, but I genuinely do not see why spending billions in the region and antagonizing China really helps us.

[astebbin]

As I understand it, an enormous percentage of global trade sails through the South China Sea. From a pragmatic standpoint, it behooves American interests to support the Vietnamese and Philippine territorial claims so that one nation (China) does not militarily and/or politically dominate such a vital trade route.

From an idealistic standpoint, America supports the notions of state sovereignty and the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea simply out of principle. Like Apple’s stance on customer data privacy, the U.S. government defends freedom as a matter of pragmatism first, and then talks up the altruistic angle :)