By Pravin R. Jethwa, July 18, 2019
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Notwithstanding the seeming friendship between Chinese president Xi Jinping and Russian president Vladimir Putin, and the growing congruence of both countries’ interests in undermining the US-led international order, relations between Russia and China remain at their core as brittle and prone to mutual suspicion and distrust as they have in the past. It is not unreasonable to expect that that underlying animosity will erupt into violence in the relatively near future.
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By Martin Andrew, China Brief: "Discussions of the INF architecture usually focus narrowly on either Russia and the United States, or on the United States and the PRC. Furthermore, significant discussion has taken place regarding how Chinese missile forces might impact the military calculations of the United States, Australia, Japan, and other Pacific nations. However, little attention has generally been given to how developments in the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) affect Russia."
by David Brady via PolicyEd
The country is currently facing electoral and political instability due to economic and demographic changes that are breaking apart existing voting blocs. This instability will continue until one party finds a dominant set of issues that attracts a winning coalition of voters. Stabilizing the political landscape will require party coalitions to address critical issues like immigration, inequality, worker insecurity, environmental challenges, and trade in a way that brings together a stable majority of voters.