Tweedy:To Stop Putin, The United States Must Get Tough On China
China’s role in the Ukraine conflict is a major factor that our leaders and media are all but ignoring. China may not be firing shots or rolling their own tanks into Ukraine, but they are very much involved. To not recognize that fact is a dangerous oversight with severe consequences for America and the rest of the Free World.
China is backing Russia. By doing so, they are easing the pain of sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe, sanctions which the west are counting on to eventually stop Putin. The less effective our sanctions, the more emboldened Russia will become. The more the war continues, the greater the chances that the West, especially the United States, will get more involved.
A March1st Reuters article points out that “Total trade between China and Russia jumped 35.9% last year to a record $146.9 billion, according to Chinese customs data, with Russia serving as a major source of oil, gas, coal and agriculture commodities, running a trade surplus with China.”
That’s not all. Since the conflict in Ukraine, China has lifted all restrictions on Russia wheat imports, upped its importation of soybeans and oil, and the people of China are buying up Russian products while the rest of the world is boycotting them.
According to another report from Reuters, “A Russian-run online store on Chinese e-commerce platform JD.com thanked Chinese shoppers for their support after it sold out of most items including chocolate and fabric softener….The online shop front of the “Russian State Pavilion” store, which says it is endorsed by the Russian Embassy to China…. It also offered pre-sales for St. Petersburg vodka, at 528 yuan ($83.57) for six bottles.”
China is also a huge buyer of Russia timber. China started importing Russian beef in 2021, and beyond just goods, “Russia is by far Beijing’s largest recipient of state sector financing, securing 107 loans and export credits worth $125 billion from Chinese state institutions between 2000 and 2017.” All of this is only increasing since the invasion of Ukraine in an effort to prop up Russia.
To top things off, “China and Russia began using their own currencies to settle bilateral trade in 2010 and opened their first currency swap line in 2014, which they renewed in 2020 for 150 billion yuan over three years” according to Reuters. The purpose of that is to ease reliance on the dollar while having their own cross border payment system.
That move has a purpose far beyond the current world events, and is strategic for China. Having their own system means that they have the capability to get around using the Swift banking system, which has been shutdown in Russia to put pressure on Putin. By using their own currency, they also weaken the US Dollar, and in turn, the power of the United States. The long term plan for China is for the Yuan (Chinese currency) to replace the US Dollar in the global marketplace. That would be a detrimental the United States and the rest of he World.
We have to understand Putin and his ultimate goal. He isn’t doing all this just to acquire Ukraine.
Putin has been clear about his longing for the Russia of the past. He has stated that the fall of the Soviet Union was one of the worst things to happen in the 20th Century. Russia wants to be powerful. They want to rule the East, at the very least. They want to be the Super Power they once were and they know they can’t do that with the United States as the top super power.
China and Russia meeting before all of this and forming a “no limits partnership” wasn’t a coincidence. “No limits” were their exact words.
First, Russia waited to attack Ukraine, at China’s request, until their Olympics were over (intelligence has confirmed that). We know that the United States went to China, foolishly, for help before Putin invaded Ukraine. We wanted China to intervene and talk to Russia. Well, China did. They gave Russia the intelligence the United States gave them, while telling the US “we can’t help you.”
Both of these Countries are alike in that they want to rule the world.
China will use Russia to accomplish their similar goals, but China is friends to no one, not even Russia. Basically “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” and for both there is no bigger enemy than the United States. China is an economic superpower already and Russia is not. China will let Russia take the brunt of this.
Basically they will stay to the rear of this issue, so if Russia should go under, they will still stay afloat, which is why they aren’t coming out in full support of Russia. Make no mistake that both countries have a common enemy and a common goal to unseat the United States’ place in the world. The more successful Russia is, and the more the United States tiptoes around Putin, the more emboldened China will become. Further, we can not forget another ally of theirs – Iran – from whom we are discussing buying more oil.
Anyone that thinks we can just stay out of this conflict in Ukraine, that it will resolve tomorrow, that diplomacy will still work, or Putin will stop after he takes Ukraine, is only fooling themselves. It reminds me greatly of America and Europe dealing with Hitler before World War II. Today though, we are dealing with much greater factors in this mix – a global economy where the western world is dependent on energy from Russia and Goods from China (and we borrow money quite a bit from China too!), Artificial Intelligence and, worst of all, nuclear weapons.
The American public needs to come to terms with the precipice we are at right now. While Americans are looking at this event as tragic, many aren’t focused on the ramifications it has for this Country. It’s easy to think Ukraine is a world away and we have our own problems. If this conflict grows, drawing in Europe and the United States, all other problems in this Country will pale in comparison to grappling with what could become a World War.
We need to realize that the world has forever changed with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and we have major decisions to make in the very near future. We need to do more. Russia and China have been preparing for decades for this moment. We need to come to terms with the state of affairs and prepare for the challenges that lie ahead. The future of the United States and the free world depends on it.
