Wu Guangqiang jw368@163.com ON June 25, Chinese President Xi Jinping signed three joint statements with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his one-day state visit to China, his fourth official visit to China since Xi took office in 2013. The inking of the three documents signals closer and stronger ties between the two neighboring countries. Of the three statements, the one on the cooperation in strengthening global strategic stability is particularly noteworthy, as China has never signed any bilateral document of this nature with any country before. With Sino-Russian ties getting increasingly closer and stronger over the years, a number of joint statements have been signed before, but none is of greater significance. The statement takes a clear stand, is strongly worded and fairly confident. In it, both sides delivered thinly veiled criticism of U.S. acts of undermining the world’s strategic stability by citing a host of specific incidences. The unprecedented statement immediately sparked heated discussions and speculations that a Sino-Russian alliance is taking shape and open confrontation between the de facto alliance and the U.S. is about to occur. But the point is not about the possibility of the formation of the Sino-Russian alliance or the conflicts between the three giants, but about what the U.S. has done to global stability and what responsible members of the international community, particularly major nations, should do to safeguard global strategic balance and security. After the end of the Cold War, the U.S. became the only superpower with unmatched superiority militarily, economically, technologically and culturally and was in a position to lead the world toward a bright future of mutual respect, security and prosperity. Almost all the countries, including Russia, formerly the biggest enemy of the U.S., welcomed American ideology and practices. The self-appointed world leader also kept promising to bring peace, security and prosperity to the world. But what happened later disappointed much of the world. The U.S.-led Cold-War-style political and military groups, like NATO and various military alliances, remain intact and have been reinforced over time. Despite Russia’s repeated expression of goodwill of staying on good terms with the U.S.-led West, Washington and NATO have never ceased aggressively encroaching on Russia’s strategic space by deploying anti-missile systems around Russia and expanding NATO, a vestige of the Cold War. In Asia, with the so-called “return to Asia” strategy, the U.S. has turned the previously peaceful East China Sea and South China Sea into troubled waters. While blabbering about “welcoming” the rise of a powerful and peaceful China, it is speeding up its military buildup in the Asia-Pacific, posing ever-increasing threats to China’s security. In Middle East and other areas, under the pretext of supporting democracy and human rights, it incited hatred among peoples with different ideas, religions and cultures, produced turbulence, violence and even wars, and launched military strikes against what it called dictators and then left the victim countries in shambles, leading to endless bloodshed. It has created “democrazy” instead of democracy. Today, the world is a mess with war-torn nations, including Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. More countries are struggling with chaotic political situations and broken economies in the aftermath of “democratic movements.” Terrorism is more rampant now than when Uncle Sam began his “war on terror” a decade ago. Millions of refugees were created as a result and are pouring into Europe, thus making the world even messier. The fundamental cause of all the trouble is the unchecked power of the U.S., whose hegemonism is a danger to the world. Obviously, as the two nations with an ability to contain the U.S.’s dangerous ambition, China and Russia must make their voice clearly heard. Only a balance of world powers can make the world safer. (The author is an English tutor and a freelance writer.) | 