Japan’s largest warship, the Izumo, steamed into the South China Sea this week in defiance of China, with military guests from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on board to witness helicopters looping over the tropical waters and gunners blasting target buoys. China claims most of the energy-rich sea through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year, much of it to and from Japanese ports. Neighbors Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, […]