It has been a year since the United States, European Union, and other allies first sanctioned Russia for its illegal annexation of Crimea and aggression toward Ukraine.
Over 400 years after Europeans received exclusive trading rights in Japan, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe returned the favor last week with a nine-day, six-nation tour of Europe.
During his 11-day European tour, Xi dramatically elevated China’s all-dimensional strategic partnership with Germany, reiterated Beijing’s special ties with Paris, and strengthened the strategic partnership with the EU.
U.S. allies clearly no longer trust the United States and its companies as much as they did before the NSA revelations. Thus, they are taking it upon themselves to seek alternatives and to protect their citizens as they see fit.
At a time when Central Europe has grown skeptical of Washington’s priorities, this new development is a clear signal of the United States’ strategic intent.
