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And I'm sure Mexico knows that the US can stop sending water at any point and there's not much they can do about it



Sure, like the US government can break any other international contract they signed. This just would not help with further trust. There is something called international law, despite there is no world government. But states are still subject to rules, or else they will isolate themself.


I think the word “law” is a little misleading in this case: International law is more like international diplomacy LARPing as law.

That said, never found a better word for it, so maybe it’s correct.


Per the constitution treaties are binding with the same force as federal law.


Yes, but treaties are themselves extraconstitutional in the framework of international diplomacy. They’re agreements between nations, and the US constitution is only binding on us. It gets expressed as law domestically but in truth, it’s closer to a contract but without a court of law to enforce them which is why they get their own word: treaties.


The real answer, and the history, lies in the root of the word treaty. It is cognate with the verb "to treat", as in how one handles affairs with another.


>> I think the word “law” is a little misleading in this case: International law is more like international diplomacy LARPing as law.

>> That said, never found a better word for it, so maybe it’s correct.

> Per the constitution treaties are binding with the force of federal law.

1) I think that's controversial, or at least not so simple. IIRC, there's a question in US law if treaties have domestic force on their own, or must be implemented by "enabling legislation."

2) In any case, the US Constitution can't make "international law" international law, at best it makes a treaty domestic US law.


Other countries don't work with the US because they trust us, they know perfectly well after Iraq and Snowden and Trump that we're not to be trusted. They work with the US because we're the world's last superpower, have overwhelming military force and enough nukes to crack the world open several times over. We're Darth Vader, the world is Cloud City, and the deal is whatever we say it is, and if we alter it, pray we don't alter it further.


Nonsensically cynical black and white take.

Mexico worked with the US on NAFTA because they trust US to buy cars and pay them. Not because they they think we will nuke them or blow them up with a death star.


Russia still has lots of nukes, too. Probably even more than you. They still discovered the international backslash, after blatantly breaking international law by invading ukraine.


What have they discovered? As far as I know, Russia is still invading Ukraine, they haven't surrendered or retreated. They've discovered that having nukes means you can get away with whatever you like, and suffer little more than a slap on the wrist from the international community. Which is what the US also knows. And North Korea. And China, whenever it decides to roll over Taiwan. Nuclear weapons mean the rules don't apply to you.


" and suffer little more than a slap on the wrist from the international community."

Russia is a international pariah now, with no more friends and the only states doing buisness with them are doing so, because russia is weak and without choice, so you can have favorable terms with them. Even china openly condemned russias aggression. They still do buisness with russia of course, but to very good conditions.

And china just did a important states meeting for central asian states:

https://thediplomat.com/2023/05/in-xian-chinas-xi-calls-for-...

Basically all former soviet states and russia was not invited or mentioned at all. China takes what russia cannot hold anymore - and russia still has to smile and dares no criticism, because without china - they would be done economically. China could not have done this prior the invasion.

And if china would try to invade Taiwan - then the military outcome is far from settled and china tries hard to avoid the political costs of a invasion. They rather want to strongarm taiwan into a forced "voluntarily" unification. Otherwise they would have invaded long ago.


Well, sure the US could decide to nullify the treaty. This would almost certainly be abysmal for Mexico/US relations. Suddenly when the US want's Mexico's help to do something, Mexico will be much less willing. Not to mention the people living along the border that need that water to survive. What will they do when they start to get really, really thirsty? I'm betting it won't be sitting on their hands waiting patiently for the US to turn the water on again.

If tensions get really bad, sure the US armed forces could probably take Mexico in a fight, but then what? What good would that do the US?

It would be a pretty idiotic thing to do, but sure, it's possible.


US Law has firmly established that the US is beholden to International Laws it is treaty to. If the Us were to stop sending water to Mexico, it would be breaking US Law as well as International Law.


US law can change whenever the US wants it to. It's like saying you hold yourself accountable not to cheat at your diet. You can just change your diet and then you're not cheating it anymore.


This is silly. There are consequences to breaking trade and resource agreements and countries will retaliate with tariffs and other means.

if you gain a reputation of a country that does not honour agreements, no-one will be interested in doing agreements with you.


That’s true, but the GGP seemed to be arguing that the fact that treaties are defacto US law is sufficiently important to preventing the US from breaking an international treaty.

I agree with you and others that the driver for abiding by treaties is not US law but us reputation. But that’s the GP’s point: the law is not the main driver here.


Sure, but I don't need layers of bureaucracy and multiple branches of government to ok the change in my diet. Let alone an international community who will hate me for it.


The US generally will not break treaties with other countries. Kinda makes us look bad if we do.


And I'm sure Americans own the businesses and land in Mexico making use of most of the water.




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