Now Donald Trump is dismantling the order that Putin had so long abhorred, and a new multipolar world is emerging in its place. Putin had thought he could rise to the top of such a system, in which raw economic and military might outweigh diplomacy and alliances. But he was mistaken: The norms and institutions of the postwar order actually masked Russia's vulnerabilities.
The Ukrainian leader said that Kyiv's partner intelligence services had also noted the moves by Beijing and Moscow to ramp up their cooperation in the military-industrial sector, adding he had instructed Ukraine's foreign intelligence service to monitor the cooperation more substantively for how it related to Ukraine's and its Western allies' interests. Global security must not be undermined because Russia's appetite for aggression remains unabated, he said.
Xi made the pledge to expand investment and economic relations as he met Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Beijing on Tuesday. China has drawn closer to Moscow since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago, despite pressure from the West. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that Xi seeks to expand mutual investment with Russia, describing the enhanced ties as a shared strategic choice and declaring that the two countries must maintain close coordination.
We have the strongest military in the world, by far, Trump told the conservative pundit Scott Jennings. They would never use their military on us. Believe me, that would be the worst thing they could ever do.
The two leaders' meeting comes the day before a military parade marking Japan's surrender in World War II. Chinese President Xi Jinping has welcomed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as an old friend while the latter said their countries' ties were at an unprecedented level, as the two began a series of meetings in Beijing seen as sending a message of defiance and strength to Western powers.
