MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th December, 2021) The US policy towards Russia, which results in pushing Moscow into further rapprochment with Beijing, is "incredibly foolish" as China poses a much greater threat to Washington, prominent political scientist and international relations scholar John Mearsheimer said on Monday.
"In terms of US-Russia relations, US foreign policy is incredibly foolish... The United States faces a much greater threat from China, because China threatens to become a hegemon in Asia and Russia is not going to become hegemon in Europe. If the United States want to contain China, the US should enlist Russia on its side rather than pushing Moscow to Beijing's hands," Mearsheimer said during a round table discussion at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
Assessing the situation in Eastern Europe, namely tension around Ukraine, Mearsheimer noted that the United States is unlikely to further the conflict. According to the scholar, escalation would push China to expand its sphere of influence, which will greatly undermine the American position in the Asian region, and therefore repairing relations with Russia is a prerequisite for the success of the US containment policy towards China.
For several months, Russia and China have faced mounting criticism and hostile rhetoric from Western countries, led by the United States. In particular, the US and its allies have been accusing Russia of a troop buildup at the country's border with Ukraine as possible preparation for an invasion. The Russian government has repeatedly denied the accusations, saying NATO's military activity near the Russian borders poses a threat to the country's own security and it reserves the right to move its troops on its sovereign territory.
On December 6, the White House announced that the US would not send an official delegation to the 2022 Winter Olympics due to alleged human rights violations by China. The move was supported by several allies, including the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. China responded by saying that attempts to politicize sports violate the Olympic Charter and that the boycott "wins no support and isolates the countries themselves."
