Be Careful United States....

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/31/opinion/united-against-china.html?ref=opinion

For centuries China and Japan have been at constant war with each other. The latest dispute was over territorial issues over the Senkaku Islands, an uninhabited island in the East China Sea. The Japanese private owners ended up buying most the islands, which resulted in a huge protest in China. This dispute over territory escalated and is considered to be the most serious Chinese-Japanese dispute since the post-war. India, also, has some territorial disputes with China which resulted in a border war in 1962. In the article, United against China, by the Editorial Board, highlights an interesting question, Is the United States against China? The reason this question came to be is because India and Japan have been getting very friendly with each other. The Editorial board consists of nineteen journalists with different expertise. They write The Time’s editorials, which represent the voice of the board. Japan offered India two billion dollars to help with India’s infrastructure, train system, and children’s hospitals. The two countries are in the process to discuss further about Japanese aid and loans for nuclear power reactor projects and to create a high speed railing system. Although India has refused to take sides over the territorial issues between Japan and China, they are still stuck in the mix because of their close relations to Japan. India even invited Japan to join India-United States naval exercise. India and Japan are happy with their relationship but Japan shouldn’t expect India to side with them over their dispute with China. They suggest that Japan should discuss their foreign policy with Washington. The intended audience is indirectly towards the United States government. If the US is not careful about whom they get friendly with, there could be a growing hostility between the United State and China. They believe that Japan is trying to sway India, by showering them with money to get them to side with them. It is inevitable that they would have to team up against China. Even though India insists that they are not going to side with Japan, their friendliness could potentially lead to an alley in the future. United States should stay neutral in the matter. The United States is in no position to upset the Chinese at this time. The national debt is at an impressive $17 trillion right now. China is responsible for 7% of the total debt, making them the largest foreign lender to the United States. China has slowly been reducing their amount they are lending to United States, from 10% to 7%. If the United States continues to keep borrowing money from China, they will own most our debt and we’ll have to work for China. Therefore, United States needs to be careful about their relationship with some countries, like Japan. If China gets upset with the United States, they could demand all the money back at once and put the United States’ economy in a deeper recession.