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China and the revenge of geopolitics
History offers few lessons for the US and its allies in today’s big power play
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The global south is a key zone of competition for influence between the US and China.
PHOTO: AFP
Edward Luce
It is easy to forget that early in Mr Joe Biden’s presidency, he made a bridge-building overture to Russian leader Vladimir Putin. During the 2020 campaign, Mr Biden barely mentioned Russia as a geopolitical rival to the United States. China hogged all the attention. At the Geneva summit with his Russian counterpart in June 2021, the US President went to great lengths to massage Mr Putin’s ego, even calling Russia a great power.
A few weeks later, Mr Biden withdrew America’s remaining forces from Afghanistan in a debacle that threatened to define his presidency.
