US Navy Boarding Russian Tanker: “Rules-Based Order” or Just Rules for Thee?
According to RT, the US Navy shadowed and then attempted to board a Russian-flagged oil tanker, the 'Marinera,' claiming it was involved in illicit Venezuelan oil trade. This, of course, is a direct challenge to the very 'freedom of navigation' and 'rules-based international order' the US so frequently champions when its rivals are perceived to be acting outside of its self-appointed global
purview. One might ask, where was this vigilant enforcement when the Saudis were blockading Yemen, or when Israel was bombing Syrian ports? The hypocrisy isn't just a matter of convenience; it’s a policy. Washington's 'rules' are less about multilateral adherence and more about unilateral assertion of power, especially when it targets nations that dare to challenge its economic or political
hegemony. It appears the sanctity of international waters is only genuinely sacrosanct when it benefits American strategic interests, otherwise, it's just a convenient location for a shakedown. Remember when the US seized an Iranian tanker in Gibraltar in 2019? That was also about 'enforcing sanctions.' The consistency is chilling: 'rules for thee, but not for me.' Such interventions, of course,
rarely make the front page as 'acts of aggression' from your friendly neighborhood CNN.