China appears to be making a concerted effort to cement alliances with as many nations as possible, but not just among some of the usual suspects, like Iran, and recently, Afghanistan, but even among U.S. allies.
Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron had a phone chat with Chinese Chairman Xi, with both sides promising to work closer to one another to “safeguard the global order.” As Xi reached out to France, reports of Greenland making overtures to China make it seem as if China is aggressively attempting to peel off American allies using the promise of investment dollars to do so.
China, Russia, Iran cement Kabul ties as US reenters Afghan game – thecradle.co
Source Link
Excerpt:
An unspoken alliance is quietly chipping away at the US-backed Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD), challenging India’s influence across the Indian Ocean, the Asia-Pacific region, and particularly South Asia.
This alignment – comprising China, Russia, Iran, and Pakistan – has emerged as a formidable counterforce, especially in the wake of the US President Donald Trump administration’s attempts to sever Beijing’s access to vital Afghan minerals.
China has already invested $14 billion into Afghanistan’s mineral, petroleum, mining, and agriculture sectors. It has also revamped the Wakhan border with Afghanistan as part of a broader strategy that includes Iran’s plans to build the Iran–Afghanistan–China corridor.
Since the US and NATO withdrawal from Kabul in 2021, Afghanistan has become a nucleus of intense regional activity. The Taliban-led government has welcomed billions in foreign investments in mining and communications, while its ties with China and Russia have deepened.