The South China Sea has been a central point of tension in the U.S.-China relationship under the Obama administration. In this podcast, Paul Haenle speaks with John Bellinger, the most senior international lawyer in the George W. Bush administration, about the implications of the July international tribunal ruling on the Philippines vs. China case, and why the U.S. is not a party to the Law of the Sea convention despite the support of consecutive bipartisan administrations. Bellinger also offers his thoughts on the upcoming U.S. presidential elections, noting that the threat of terrorism from actors such as ISIS, an increasingly assertive Russia in Europe and Syria, and developments in the North Korean nuclear program would be among the top foreign policy priorities for the next U.S. administration.