nc – at: !/t – us lashout

2nc – at: !/t – us lashout

The US won’t lash out

China and Russia, Frenemies Sharing one giant, resource-rich landmass, China and Russia are in many ways natural enemies. But for now they have more reasons to team up against the U.S. instead, and it’s not clear the U.S. is ready to deal with it. The China-U.S. rivalry is more glaring these days, mainly because President Donald Trump keeps aggravating it. Today he took credit for holding up a trade deal, and yesterday he threatened massive tariffs on Chinese goods if Xi Jinping doesn’t meet with him at the G-20 summit. He’s personally friendlier toward Russia – which helped get him elected, after all – but his administration has not been. James Stavridis points out China and Russia share an interest in spreading authoritarianism around the world, and they currently have matching needs; China needs Russia’s raw materials, while Russia needs China’s influence. As Russia encourages disunity in Europe, China tries to pull Europe-adjacent countries into its orbit with its “One Belt, One Road” scheme. Can the center hold? Trump’s Pentagon, meanwhile, has ditched its longstanding goal of being able to fight two wars at once, in order to focus on fighting one very big war, against either China or Russia. Right away you see the problem, writes Hal Brands: What if China and Russia both want to fight at the same time? And what if a third combatant – North Korea, say – jumps into the fray? Perceived U.S. weakness, Hal writes, could make every rival bolder, and the world more dangerous.