(06-16-2025, 05:16 AM)727Sky Wrote:
Contrary to many popular western beliefs, China and Russia have never been "buddies". They share some similarities in terms of form of government and ruling behavior (but they are not a model of one another), AND their alliances have never really been put to the test. Yes, Russia provided (and continues to provide) much needed military aid and cooperation across much of Asia, especially during the Vietnam conflict, but if push came to shove people should not consider Russia and/or China diehard allies.
Case in point, China and Russia have way more nukes pointed at each other than they ever do against the West (USA and Europe). At issue is Russia's far east. And both Russia and China know this. China would just love access to Russia's far east, and Russia will go to the mat before they allow this to happen. This should tell anyone interested just about everything they need to know. No sensationalized news story will change a fact which has been in place for decades.
Russia and China both possess vast amounts of real estate, but Russia's, unlike China's real estate, is largely chocked full of natural resources, and China's is vast amounts of barren high desert. The western half of China is largely uninhabitable due to lack of resources and lack of infrastructure as a result. Russia's far east is also largely unpopulated, but the available resources are exponentially better and more available. Just look at where western China's border ends; it's pretty much central Asia (Middle East) vs. where Russia's western border ends...Europe. The differences in potential are staggering. This is why China's 'Belt and Road' initiative seeks to gain access to eastern Europe without going through Russia. Just look at the infrastructure build-out of the Belt and Road initiative to see the routes it takes.