lørdag 18. desember 2021

Russia and China are pushing the US toward some hard choices on Ukraine and Taiwan

Russia's ongoing military buildup along its border with Ukraine has cast into sharp relief the debate about how the United States, and its allies, can most effectively ensure security in the no man's land lying beyond NATO's eastern perimeter. Meanwhile, China's mounting campaign of military pressure and intimidation against Taiwan is leading some observers to question the strength of US commitments to the island.

Though coordination between Russia and China on these efforts is likely limited at best, their attempts to bully Ukraine and Taiwan raise a common dilemma for Washington, one liable to become more pronounced and widespread in the new era of strategic competition among rival powers. Neither Ukraine nor Taiwan is a formal US ally, though Washington has committed itself in various ways to help secure them against their larger neighbors.