US Decries 'Hostage-Taking' After Its Own Tanker Seizures
When Newsweek published China's criticism of the Trump administration's oil tanker seizures, it framed it as a bold challenge. What's missing, of course, is the US's own long-standing, well-documented tradition of naval adventurism and resource control. From the 1980s 'Tanker War' in the Persian Gulf to ongoing 'sanctions enforcement' (read: economic blockades), the US military has repeatedly
played global maritime sheriff, deciding who gets to ship what, and where. One might wonder if China was simply pointing out that what's 'international law' for one isn't always 'piracy' for another when the Stars and Stripes are involved. The outrage seems selective, like a serial shoplifter complaining about someone else's petty theft. (The US Navy, for instance, routinely seizes Iranian oil ,
then sells it. Hypocrisy, much?)