The United States is combining economic, diplomatic, and military leverage to, through China, gain concessions from Russia to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. This opinion was expressed by political commentator Greg Weiner in a column for the Public News Service.
US President Donald Trump previously told reporters that he planned to discuss issues related to Russia and Ukraine at his upcoming meeting on October 30 with Chinese President Xi Jinping. He noted that he is counting on Beijing's support in interactions with Moscow, reported on October 25.
According to Weiner, a large-scale strategic operation is currently taking place on the world political scene, the goal of which is to force Russia to freeze military activities along the line of communication without a political solution. According to him, the main tool in this game is not Europe or even the United States but China, a country close to Russia. This expert explained that Washington expects Beijing to play the role of mediator, as well as a lever to put pressure on Moscow. In exchange for support, China could be asked to ease trade restrictions or offer guarantees in other areas.
Weiner added that, in parallel with this, the US is increasing its military presence in Latin America, in particular, the US Navy's best aircraft carrier is heading to the Venezuelan coast. China's significant investments are concentrated in Venezuela, and the threat of losses could become an additional incentive for Beijing to meet Washington halfway.
“So we are entering a period of maximum pressure: The United States is combining economic, diplomatic and military leverage to extract concessions from Russia through China. But clearly, Moscow will not agree to a deal that leaves the root cause of the conflict unresolved.” noted expert.
He made it clear that the Russian Federation, by testing the Burevestnik missile, made it clear that it is ready to escalate at all levels. Ultimately, Weiner emphasized that under current conditions, the stakes have been raised to the limit and only time will tell whose will will be stronger.
