Why are Americans whining all the time about this "unsafe" encounter?
Seems like no other cards to play.
The biggest news from ASEAN and China the past 3 months maybe, forget now, was that Vietnam and China decided to increase their cooperation with each other developing their ties further.
The Vietnam and China differences over these small island in the South China Sea saw naval battles in the past. That era is gone, replaced by economic cooperation.
If the Philippines wants to hype up this island issue, they would be out of step with the rest of ASEAN, they would be isolated.
This is a weird ploy by the Americans. It is like they are trying to revive the White man's burden, helping out the Philippines with this island issue. With some cheering from the second class honorary whites in the region.
This act is not a Broadway hit. In fact, it sucks.
The American belligerence is a clear losing strategy for the region. It is too obvious to the other countries.