I was under the impression that we should be acting to maximize the good in the world, regardless of what a strict pursuit of the letter of the law may entail. Are you arguing that sanctions on Iran have been effective to that end? Or are you arguing that China is, in fact, going to elect to spy on us less on the basis of this incident? Or are you arguing that this is somehow about justice for the Uyghurs?
You call it whataboutism, but the fact is that we pick and choose our human rights abusers as part of the same political process this incident is a part of. If you don’t see these as intrinsically connected to a broader game of managing and projecting international power, then you view the problem of human rights abusers far too narrowly.
