ANALYSIS, BUSINESS, CHINA, RUSSIA

CHINA AND RUSSIA: A LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIP – ANALYSIS

PUBLISHED BY THE FOREIGN POLICY RESEARCH INSTITUTE

By June Teufel Dreyer

Sanctions levied by Western nations against Russia as a result of its actions in Ukraine were already taking a toll on the nation’s economy when a sharp fall in world oil prices sent the ruble into virtual free fall. Capital flight more than doubled from its previous high of $61 billion […]


Sanctions levied by Western nations against Russia as a result of its actions in Ukraine were already taking a toll on the nation’s economy when a sharp fall in world oil prices sent the ruble into virtual free fall. Capital flight more than doubled from its previous high of $61 billion in 2013 to $151.5 billion in 2014.[1] Given President Vladimir Putin’s determination to stay the course in Ukraine despite the consequences, moving closer to China, seemed not only logical but imperative. China needed energy for its growing economy; Russia had copious supplies thereof. Russia had need of funds to reflate its sagging economy; China had them. In May 2014, the two countries signed a 30-year agreement to export Russian gas to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) via a Siberian pipeline. Unsurprisingly in light of the parlous Russian position, the deal was markedly in the PRC’s favor.[2] With the partnership seemingly motivated by geopolitical strategy as much as commercial interests, Western analysts speculated that it might herald an authoritarian political alliance that could challenge the liberal ideological as well as financial world order.

.......

Read more www.eurasiareview.com