Yeah canon I believe is you can’t get close enough to transport without violating the neutral zone. So it’s a binary either or choice. You rescue and start a war or you watch those people die.
The latter is what Sulu did, but there’s more backstory to why he made that choice back then. Obviously from the movies he changed as a captain to do whatever it took when the assistance was needed by friends.
Yeah canon I believe is you can’t get close enough to transport without violating the neutral zone. So it’s a binary either or choice. You rescue and start a war or you watch those people die.
The latter is what Sulu did, but there’s more backstory to why he made that choice back then. Obviously from the movies he changed as a captain to do whatever it took when the assistance was needed by friends.