WATCH: The Future of China-Russia Relations

On February 4, 2022, President Putin and President Xi issued a joint statement detailing shared positions between Russia and China on a variety of global issues. China explicitly supports Russian opposition to further enlargement of NATO, a reference to Ukraine’s efforts to join the alliance. China taking an overt position on European security is a notable first. Russia and China affirmed their commitment to resist Western influence, criticized AUKUS (the trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.) and U.S. military expansion in the Indo-Pacific, and stated that there are “no limits” to their cooperation.

What are the driving forces behind China-Russia relations? How can the U.S. and the international community prepare for tighter economic, military, and technological cooperation between Russia and China? What key national security questions should the U.S. immediately consider, and how should it mitigate any new challenges? Will China strengthen its resolve to militarily reclaim Taiwan?  And does a tighter China-Russia relationship indicate a weakening U.S. leadership role?