MSGID: 1:135/250@fidonet 6944c56a   
   PID: C-NET AMIGA BBS 5.36b   
   On Thu 18-Dec-2025  6:16a, Joseph Pereira@1:103/705.0 wrote:   
      
   JP> The US has approved a massive arms sale to Taiwan. It involves a purchase   
   JP> of $11.15 billion worth of weapons.   
      
   JP> This purchase poses an additional problem for Ukraine, because the US   
   JP> prefers to sell to Taiwan rather than to Ukraine/Europe. This is entirely   
   JP> due to Trump's personal preferences.   
      
     I personally feel that Trump doesn't know enough about geopolitics to have a   
   preference one way or another.  This is being purely driven by the military   
   industrial complex, with the side bennifit of the necessity of playing both   
   sides of the field.  While Trump may think he is buddies with Putin.  Putin   
   has shown that he does not honor his agreements.  Vis a' vis Ukraine, and he   
   is more than happy to play Trump like a fool.  If I were to hedge my bets, I   
   would say the MIC sees this as a WIN WIN.  With what looks like the begginings   
   of another Cold War, these will be massive amounts of cash to be made with   
   conflicts both in the Eur/Asian theater and the South China Sea.  Even if a   
   peace/ceasefire is worked out and implemented I am sure someone is hedging   
   their bets it will not last and we will have to step in to provide arms or   
   military support (direct or indirect).  "We antincipated this, and we have   
   this hudge stockpile just waiting for you to buy!"   
      
      
   JP> In Trump's view, China is the future enemy and Russia the future ally of   
   JP> the US.   
      
   Again, I don't think Trump has much knowledge with history and the politics of   
   the region, heck most American's don't.  History was THE class to sleep   
   through.  Heck, if South Korea is an example there is enough naivty to go   
   around (and South Korea is right in the thick of it!).   
      
   While China is currently a *"communist" natation and used the rise of   
   communism in the old Soviet Union as a building block for their own civil war,   
   the Chinese has a major idiological and political shift with the U.S.S.R   
   following the death of Stalin.  While the Chinese government and the Soviets   
   were players in the Viet Nam war, in so far as their goals in aiding the   
   communist rebels in SE Asia, the regiemes they established could not have been   
   more different.  Viet Nam anf Laos being alligned with the Soviets, and   
   Cambodia alligned with Beijing, and the political games Norodom Sihanouk   
   played to cling to power in Cambodia and his weird take on "Neutrality" ie. I   
   will allow the Viet Cong to stretch the Ho Chi Minh trail across our boarders,   
   but also allow US troops to pursue those troops.  Then later, once deposed by   
   the US backed Gen. Lon Nol and being exiled in China fully put his support   
   behind the Kmere Rouge and Pol Pot.  After the wars ended, Viet Nam did not   
   and never would trust the Chinese due to their being ruled by them for almost   
   1,000 years as part of Cochin China firmly relied on support from The Soviets.    
   This was never more evident than during the armed conflict with Viet Nam,   
   after the Khmere Rouge decided to attempt to take land from Viet Nam they   
   claim was theirs historically in the late 1970s.   This did NOT end well for   
   Democratic Kahmpuchea, and put the final nail in the coffin of the KR rule.    
   In that sense, the Vietnamese army became the peace keepers in SE Asia.  On a   
   side note..  Want to take a wild guess who the US assisted, through China?    
      
   I do not see Rusia getting involved in a conflict between the PRK and the ROC,   
   as long as it stays confined to Taiwan.  I could see Japan possibly entering   
   the fray (The self defense clause was removed from their constitution in   
   2015), however that would preclude South Korea from joining.   
      
   Now if the conflict spread further into the South China Sea.  You would see   
   Thailand, Laos, the Philippines, and Viet Nam standing with us, as they are   
   dead set against Chinese expansion in their region.   
      
   While the Russian Navy still uses Viet Nam as a deep water port in the region,   
   I do not see them becoming directly involved, maybe limmited trading of arms   
   through Laos and Viet Nam, but they are just streched too thin.   
      
   I can imagine though that a lot of the old school weapons manufactures   
   salivating over this, but I do not think Trump has anything to do with this.    
      
   Rug Rat (Brent Hendricks)   
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