But for now, Russia’s main focus is the West, however in the near future, Russia’s concerns will focus on the rise of China. In the long run, the China–Russia relationship will have divergent goals. (To understand the origins, structural forces that are driving it, what will be the outcome, consider reading Kishore’s book, ‘Has China Won?’ – it speaks of the larger geopolitical contest between the US and China, and the pressure from the West that has led China to keep up its partnership with Russia.)Ĭhina and Russia are allies. While Russia is not seen as a long-term threat to Western dominance (especially American), China is recognised as one.Īnd because of this, a major geopolitical contest has been festering between the two giants. Though it is true, Chinese and Russian leaders did say, in February this year (before the invasion of Ukraine), there are no limits to their partnership.īut this was more in reference to the broader relations between the two, which is quite natural, considering both are under tremendous pressure from the West, for different reasons. The key point is – China could have easily supported Russia in this war, however, it has been very careful in ensuring it kept a certain distance from it. Quietly behind the scenes, it is thought, China is trying to find ways to achieve an acceptable solution. So, while China has been very careful about their position on the conflict, they have, at the same time, maintained close ties with Ukraine, a major trading partner. The truth is, in geopolitics, everything is very complicated, and never straight forward.Ĭountries like China, India, South Africa and Brazil have to weigh many considerations before working out their positions, as they have their national interests to think of. The largest democracy in the world, India, has not condemned Russia either. Of course, this myopic view is limited in its revelation, because China has not supported Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, nor has it condemned the Russians. China is evil and China should be condemned!” The likes of The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, to name a few.įrom them, one can only expect a rather black and white picture.Ī picture that is understandably predictable, “China is taking Russia’s side, therefore China is wrong.

To discover the answer, one must first, disregard the reports from the Western media. What exactly is China’s position on the Ukraine war? Recently, an intriguing question has been on everyone’s mind.

Has china won by kishore mahbubani