Russia was a military threat, but never an economic rival. China, however, is becoming the first power in a century capable of challenging American dominance on both economic and military terms.
Some American policymakers felt that China would eventually rise, with or without U.S. help. If you take that view, then welcoming China as a friendly partner, instead of a hostile power, made sense. Today, China has a far bigger stake in the international system and the U.S. economy than Nixon could have imagined possible.
It’s too early to tell how far China will stick its neck out for Russia in its confrontation with the West over Ukraine. China’s leaders have long argued for a world free of formal military alliances. They’ve been cautious about getting entangled in other countries’ military conflicts.
But President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Mr. Xi took pains to present a common front recently when they issued an extraordinary joint statement hours before the opening night of the Winter Olympics in Beijing. The statement pledged that their cooperation would be “superior” to the one forged between the two countries during the Cold War. No area of cooperation would be off limits, presumably including Russia giving China its most advanced weaponry.
The truth is that the world has changed. American democracy doesn’t look as shiny as it used to. Many people around the world are tired of Westerners telling them what to do.
Read the full original article via New York Times here.
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Opinion by Farah Stockman. She joined the Times editorial board in 2020. For four years, she was a reporter for The Times, covering politics, social movements and race. She previously worked at The Boston Globe, where she won a Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 2016.
Featured Image: Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters