It’s premature to assert there is certain China-Russia alliance - former US ambassador

Taylor expressed this opinion in an interview with Ukrlife.TV, Ukrinform reports.

"I think it's a little premature to say that there is an alliance between China and Russia or that they see eye to eye on everything. Obviously, there is an element of mistrust, they have different interests in the economy, and I still think that Russia will be the little brother in this relationship," Taylor said.

He noted that both Russia and China claim that the "evil Americans" want to surround them or limit their development, and this unites them. However, there are also differences that will become more pronounced over time, the diplomat predicted. 

Taylor also advised to pay attention to the question of whether there is real trust between the Chinese and Russians.

In this context, he recalled that after last year's meeting in Beijing at the opening of the Olympics, Xi Jinping and Putin declared a comprehensive partnership between Russia and China. Three weeks later, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. 

"There are some indicators that Putin did not tell Xi about his intention. It seems that China respects sovereignty and territorial integrity. So when the Russians invaded Ukraine just a few weeks after signing the Comprehensive Partnership Agreement with China, the Chinese were furious," the diplomat said.

Another recent example of mistrust between Russia and China, according to Taylor, is Putin's announcement that he intends to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus a week after President Xi said in Moscow that nuclear weapons have no place in modern conflict. 

"The Chinese are unlikely to be happy after this. They should be offended," the former US ambassador said.

According to Taylor, if we take a broader view, the differences in the interests of Russia and China will become more noticeable. 

"For example, Siberia is practically uninhabited, and there are a lot of Chinese. Siberia has a lot of minerals, and the Chinese need these resources. Therefore, you can see for yourself how strong the tension between Russia and China is in these matters," the diplomat said. 

He also predicted that after Russia loses the war, the Chinese may perceive Russia as an unequal partner that cannot defend itself.

Summarizing, the former US ambassador noted that in relations between Russia and China "not everything is as clear as we think, everything is more complicated." 

As Ukrinform reported, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said before she left for China that the way Beijing uses its relations and influence on Moscow will have far-reaching consequences.