Russia and China are aligning against the United States. China and Russia Align Against USA reports the two powerful nations are issuing demands on President Biden. “Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have given a defiant message to the U.S. and the West, following their meeting in Beijing on Friday ahead of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony,” the article states.
Putin and Xi Jinping issued a joint statement after the summit, calling on the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance (NATO) to rule out expansion in eastern Europe and criticizing Asia-Pacific security blocs. They also called on the U.S. to abandon plans to deploy intermediate and shorter-range missiles in the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.” China and Russia “oppose the further expansion” of the U.S-led alliance, calling on the organization to “abandon the ideological approaches of the Cold War era.” NATO should “respect the sovereignty, security and interests of other countries,” the statement added.
Russian news agencies focused on the leaders’ pledge to “resist the interference of external forces in the internal affairs of sovereign countries.” The statement has underlined Moscow and Beijing’s common interests in conflicts with western powers. It criticized the U.S. withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty and the development of land-based intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles. Deploying missiles by the US in the Asia-Pacific and European regions increased “tension and mistrust.” The joint statement from China and Moscow added that Beijing and Moscow would “continue to …strengthen coordination on this issue.”
Friday’s summit was the first in-person meeting between Putin and Xi for two years and is expected to cement ties between their countries, as the Russian president faces global pressure over the buildup of troops by the border with Ukraine. China expressed its support for Russian action in or near Ukraine. Reuters has reported that the meeting also yielded a gas deal, with Beijing pledging to increase its imports of the fossil fuel from Russia with a new contract on supplying 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) per year to China from Russia’s Far East.”
The situation for the United States may flare into dangerous interactions. Russian fighter jets recently came within a few feet of a US aircraft while conducting “intercepts.” A former US Navy pilot explained Russia might be trying to intimidate the US. Intercepts are fairly run-of-the-mill events without a lot of danger. Intercepting aircraft typically identify and surveil foreign or unidentified aircraft at a safe distance and escort them within an area of interest. This Russian intercept was considered unreasonably dangerous.