Roughshod over China's rights

US' willingness to breach international laws and norms has emboldened Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines to do likewise

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China six and a half decades ago, China has championed the United Nations Charter, as this Charter, in advocating peace, non-aggression and development, has been the source of all international laws in the post-colonial age. As a former victim of imperialism and colonialism, China and all other formerly suppressed countries should enjoy the protection of the UN in a fairer world. And by sticking to the model of UN-based collective security and widest possible multilateralism, the former colonizers are also better off through treating small and weak countries on an equal footing.

But although China advocates advancing national interests and international relations with international norms and laws as a priority, a number of its own legitimate sovereign interests have not yet been properly respected. In fact, among all major countries, China is still the only one whose fundamental national interests in sovereignty and territorial integrity have not been fully attained. For instance, the Chinese mainland has not yet reunified with Taiwan, not has China fully retained the Diaoyu Islands, despite the fact that imperialist Japan, which invaded China and stole these islands around 1894-1895, was defeated in World War II. Additionally, Vietnam, the Philippines, and other neighbors have occupied some of the Chinese islands and islets in the South China Sea since the 1970s, which they have recognized, both explicitly and implicitly, on numerous occasions as belonging to China. Frankly speaking, external factors, especially the involvement of the United States in the region, have complicated the situation even more.