Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to China came only days after Donald Trump's own high-profile meetings in Beijing, leading some analysts to suggest a new “great triangle” is forming among the world's largest powers.
By Fyodor Lukyanov, editor-in-chief of Russia in Global Affairs, chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, and research director of the Valdai International Discussion Club.
However, according to the analysis, the timing itself may be largely coincidental.
Putin's visits and meetings with Chinese leadership have become routine and increasingly institutionalised, while Trump's own visit had reportedly faced multiple delays due to wider global developments.
Three powers shaping global affairs
The article argues that Russia, China and the United States remain the three countries with the greatest ability to influence global events, though each possesses different strengths.
America continues to hold unmatched military and financial influence.
China maintains enormous industrial and economic weight.
Russia continues to exert significant geopolitical and strategic influence that extends well beyond the size of its economy.
Yet while the three powers may shape world events together, the relationships between them are increasingly moving in different directions.
US-China relationship shifting toward competition
The report argues that the relationship between Washington and Beijing has fundamentally changed.
For decades the relationship operated through economic cooperation despite political disagreements.
According to the analysis, that period has now largely ended.
China's restrictions on rare-earth exports are cited as an example of Beijing possessing leverage that Washington has struggled to counter effectively.
The report argues that Chinese leadership increasingly sees pressure from Washington as a long-term structural feature of US policy rather than simply the approach of one administration.
As a result, the relationship is described as one of managed competition rather than convergence.
Russia-China partnership built differently
The article argues that Moscow and Beijing see each other primarily as strategic partners rather than direct rivals.
Both countries increasingly view Eurasia as the central arena of 21st century geopolitical competition.
Their cooperation now reportedly spans:
- Trade
- Energy
- Finance
- Science
- Technology
- Military coordination
- Political cooperation
The analysis argues that while disagreements and friction still exist, they are not viewed as existential threats to the broader relationship.
Pressure producing the opposite effect
According to the report, attempts by Washington to weaken Russia-China relations may instead be strengthening them.
Many US strategists have openly argued that separating Moscow and Beijing would be necessary to preserve American global dominance.
However, the analysis suggests external pressure has often had the opposite result.
Rather than creating distance, it may be pushing both countries into closer strategic alignment.
Stability becoming a strategic advantage
The article concludes by arguing that predictability itself has become increasingly valuable in an unstable international environment.
While US-China relations are described as being shaped by uncertainty and competition, Moscow and Beijing are portrayed as having constructed a more stable long-term framework.
Whether that partnership continues to deepen remains one of the major geopolitical questions shaping the emerging world order.
Source: RT