China & Russia

[Anomalocaris]

Russia and China has long and deep historic grievances.    Dictators who secure their own grasp on power by fanning ethnic and xenophobic feelings are unlikely to be able to bury ethic grievances, much less trust each other to bury their grievances.     So mutual suspicion and awareness that the end of any partnership is but one backstab away will keep them from becoming closely collaborating Allie’s.      So however Much kinship they might appear to have through their modes of governance and whatever strategic interest they may appear to share, their very forms of government makes it unlikely for Russia and China to ever become close coordinating partners.     Their partnership might be more similar to those between germany and Japan than those between the Allie’s, but with rather less collabration because German and Japan didn’t have mutual territorial disputes.

[WinterHold]

Call them with their real names: Gog and Magog.
You see their alliance unfolding now; eh ?

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Call them with their real names: Gog and Magog.
You see their alliance unfolding now; eh ?

Their real names are Fred and Ginger - they sometimes dance together, but that’s as far as it goes.

Boru

[Deesse23]

Call them with their real names: Gog and Magog.
You see their alliance unfolding now; eh ?

Stop doing Crack and Meth
and you will stop seeing "things"

[Leonardo17]

I don’t know which movie it was. Someone was talking about Nazi Germany and said that “One does not fight the USA and Russia at two fronts. One has to bring the USA and Russia to fight one another”.
 
I think this is what China just did in a very successful manner. Without that, even with all their economic growth etc. China would have been able to become a real challenge for the West. Now there will be a Soviet Union 2.0 there and the world will have to live with it.
 
2) If Israel + the US moves on Iran (and I would not be among those who cry for days if something like that really happened), China will probably move on Taiwan in the Pacific.
 
Yet, ad country of 1,5 Billion inhabitants is always a puzzle. So these are just my own personal ideas

[The Grand Nudger]

Chinese leadership would have to be smoking the same meth that russian leadership has been on if they think they're going to pull off an invasion. Taiwan is much better defended than Ukraine was and china is less militarily capable than russia. It's unclear why china would even want a damaged taiwan.

[Fireball]

Chinese leadership would have to be smoking the same meth that russian leadership has been on if they think they're going to pull off an invasion.  Taiwan is much better defended than Ukraine was and china is less militarily capable than russia.  It's unclear why china would even want a damaged taiwan.

Killing the goose that lays Rhodium eggs would be extremely bad form, to say the least.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I don’t know which movie it was. Someone was talking about Nazi Germany and said that “One does not fight the USA and Russia at two fronts. One has to bring the USA and Russia to fight one another”.
 
I think this is what China just did in a very successful manner. Without that, even with all their economic growth etc. China would have been able to become a real challenge for the West. Now there will be a Soviet Union 2.0 there and the world will have to live with it.
 
2) If Israel + the US moves on Iran (and I would not be among those who cry for days if something like that really happened), China will probably move on Taiwan in the Pacific.
 
Yet, ad country of 1,5 Billion inhabitants is always a puzzle. So these are just my own personal ideas

I disagree with this reading. China has certainly drawn Russia into its economic orbit, but Russia's invasion has made the Western world take serious note of the dangers posed by the world's autocracies, leading to greater support for Taiwan. It's also made other nations very cautious of the Belt and Road Initiative. When combined with their economic downturn and the need to increase their military budget, the Chinese situation is probably not nearly so strong as it was 18 months ago, imo.

[Leonardo17]

[Thumpalumpacus]