China and Russia’s Deepening Ties in a World Unraveling Under Trumpian Provocation
November 5, 2025•430 words
The world is returning to the fragile order of great power rivalry, as shown by the growing ties between China and Russia, particularly against the backdrop of Trump's renewed imperialist rhetoric, threats, and arrogance.
Established in a pre-Trump era and extending through 2026, their 2001 treaty is presented as a promise of consultation rather than bloodshed, enabling two powerful authoritarians to quickly coordinate in the event of an external threat without being bound by the same kind of automatic warfare that has historically sunk nations into disaster or a NATO defensive pact. Beneath that cautious rhetoric, however, is a more sinister and profound "no limits" secret partnership that was announced in 2022 and has since grown to include joint military drills, technology sharing, and covert assistance for Russia's gruelling conflict in Ukraine.
Russian weapons factories are now receiving Chinese electronics, chemicals, and machine tools, fuelling a conflict that has already ripped Europe's moral fabric. Furthermore, despite Beijing and Moscow's public claims that they are eschewing the strict Cold War alliances, their actions reveal otherwise. For example, Russian training of elite Chinese airborne units and trilateral meetings with North Korea and Iran resemble the loose formation of a counter-Western bloc. China views Russia as a close partner and a helpful buffer and battering ram, and both sides are unwilling to commit to a full mutual defence pact.
The uncertainty is crucial because it frees Beijing and Moscow from the suicidal certainties of previous empires and enables them to challenge U.S. power, particularly under a Trump administration that brags of supremacy with the care of a shield. However, ambiguity has its own risks; it blurs boundaries, promotes poor judgment, and undermines the remnants of a global order that has already been undermined by war, the rise of authoritarianism, and the gradual erosion of diplomatic standards. The great powers' own fears and ambitions pull them closer to conflict in this atmosphere.
Within the next 12 to 16 months, it is not surprising that a Trump-led administration will launch military operations that destabilize Iran and Venezuela, two important BRICS nations.
Such acts would follow a well-known American pattern: undermining antagonistic economies and regime change by installing a pro-American political puppet, a simple cooperation through the use of imperial force. Trump's national security apparatus would target these nations in an effort to subtly undermine China and Russia, which would put pressure on the larger BRICS alliance.