I don’t know, the name always makes me think of the crazy vampire woman that Buffy never managed to slay.

This didn’t even make the US broadcast. NBC skipped a lot of countries from the Parade of Nations. As a country of immigrants, you’d think they’d show them all.

The UK is going through the same thing. The Prime Minister dissolved Parliament about two weeks ago, and elections are going to be held of July 4th. (An odd choice, but apparently elections are always on a Thursday in the UK.)

China hasn’t demonstrated the ability to execute a sustained naval campaign far from their home ports in the past. They’re a green water navy with blue water aspirations. While this would be a good chance to practice long range deployments and air defense strategies, with the eyes of the world focused on the Red Sea, they don’t want to risk screwing up and loosing national prestige.

A Tomahawk cruise missile only uses a rocket motor to take off from a ship or submarine. After launch, it unfolds its wings and uses a jet engine to fly to its target.

It’s international waters, anyone can be there. Its named the China Sea because it’s next to China, not because China owns it. It’s not like the Gulf of Mexico belongs to Mexico.