Why Russia and China’s joint military exercises should worry the West

RUSSIA has long feared a Chinese invasion of its sprawling far east. Large Russian armies regularly drill in southern Siberia. This year the exercises are the largest since the cold war. But what is striking is not just the scale of “Vostok-2018” (see), but the fact that thousands of Chinese soldiers will take part in them as honoured guests.To some this looks like the reversal of Richard Nixon’s visit to China in 1972. Back then, America split the big communist powers. Now China and Russia are binding closer to challenge the American order. The parallel with the cold war is imperfect. But the West should worry nonetheless, not least because the exercises hold a mirror to America’s weakened alliances.