Beijing, Moscow, and the long game

Beijing, Moscow, and the long game

Vladimir Putin's recent visit to Beijing is being read as more evidence that Xi Jinping and the CCP are locking in ties with Moscow ahead of a possible power transition. Beijing is extending its visa-free regime with Russia until the end of 2027 — a policy that brought a record two million Russians to China last year. The relationship is described as deeper, broader, and still complicated, with frictions, chauvinism, and racism all acknowledged in the mix, even as Beijing keeps courting Russian elites under the banner of long-term cooperation.

Gobble's Take: "Long-term cooperation" and "complicated" in the same sentence means the brochure is beautiful and nobody believes a word of it. Source: Substack

The Iran file, remixed

A community-news briefing on the long arc of American and Israeli conflict with Iran argues that Donald J. Trump was systematically cultivated by the political and intelligence establishment of Israel — with one purpose: turning the full military, economic, and diplomatic weight of the United States against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Benjamin Netanyahu had already pushed hard against the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, pressing President Barack Obama directly and even addressing the United States Congress in an open attempt to sink the deal. When that failed, the approach shifted. The piece frames 2026 as the moment that multi-year investment came full circle — and describes the strategy as now collapsing under the weight of physical economic realities.

Gobble's Take: Decades of careful cultivation, one grand strategy, and then reality showed up — unscheduled, unbriefed, and entirely unmoved. Source: Perplexity Search

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• Venezuela became a test case for harder power