Carnegie Moscow Center
East Asia is coming back to a phase in which economic considerations dominate. In this milieu Russia may lose her place in East Asia, because it will be deprived of an opportunity to play China against the West.
On August 7, China conducted a test of a hypersonic weapon. Open-source information about what happened that day in a remote part of Inner Mongolia allows for a few observations.
The world can be an awfully dangerous and unpredictable place.
Narendra Modi’s and his associates’ foreign policy experience will guide them toward a balanced policy in which Russia will play one of the key roles.
Tensions in Ukraine threaten to alter the security environment in the Arctic. Russia must, therefore, proceed with caution if it wants to maintain previous levels of cooperation. Only time will tell if the hawks in the Kremlin will be willing to engage in cooperation rather than see the region as a zero-sum game.
An important obstacle to the escalation of tensions in the Asia-Pacific region is the position of third-party countries, including Russia, which is interested in developing relations with China and also its neighbors.
The problems arising across the globe from militant radical Islam cannot be dealt with at a later date. Russia and the West have vital mutual interests, since they share this common enemy. Given the extent of its involvement, Russia should take the initiative.
Vladimir Putin's trip to Latin America is aimed to demonstrate several things, both geopolitically and economically. Latin America will undoubtedly add to the agenda of U.S.-Russian relations.
Japan’s new guidelines for overseas operation by the country’s Self-Defense Forces are not aimed at Russia. On the contrary, Japan’s pro-active policy serves the maintenance of balance of power in North-East Asia, which in its turn fits the interest of Russia.
The Chinese do not have to listen to the Russians to see threats to their national sovereignty and domestic stability on the horizon. Both see Western support for democracy as a tool to contain them internationally and to weaken them from within.