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China is likely concerned about the new US administration's efforts to establish friendly relations with Russia, The Washington Post reports.
The article says that the rapid warming of US-Russian relations has led some experts to suggest that Donald Trump is trying to carry out a “Nixon reversal,” i.e., repeat the diplomatic success of President Richard Nixon, who managed to drag China to the American side in the confrontation with the USSR in the 1970s. Now Trump probably wants to do the same, but with Moscow — to make it an ally in the confrontation with China.
Beijing is trying to demonstrate that Trump will not be able to carry out a "Nixon reversal."
“China and Russia have forged a comprehensive partnership that encompasses everything from security to economic development. They are no longer the countries they once were. As a Greek philosopher said, ‘No one ever steps into the same river twice,’” said Cui Hongjian, an expert on European studies at Beijing Foreign Studies University.
Beijing echoed that sentiment this week, with the English-language Global Times, a mouthpiece for the Chinese Communist Party, publishing an editorial rejecting the idea that Beijing was “nervous” about Trump’s attempts to appease Moscow.
On Monday, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping held a telephone conversation, in which the Chinese leader stressed that no “third party” could influence their bilateral relations.
However, in reality, such rhetoric may be exactly what it seems – an attempt to pass off wishful thinking as reality. China is likely not interested in seeing the conflict in Ukraine end.
“The real concern is that if there is peace in Ukraine, the resources that the US and perhaps the Europeans previously allocated to support Ukraine will then be refocused on Asia,” said Ja Yan Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore.
At the same time, continued rivalry with the United States means that China needs a partnership with Russia even more.
