Wow! Hot news! After two years of war between Russia and Ukraine, Russia was in danger, and took the initiative to find China to discuss loans. Why is Russia targeting China, and will China agree? Let's unveil the shocking curtain of this international wrestling.
After just two years of war, Russia seems to be unable to hold on. According to the Russian Satellite News Agency on February 26**, Russian Finance Minister Siluanov openly said that he is discussing the possibility of RMB borrowing with China, and the two countries began to study this issue as early as 2023, but it has not yet been decided. What kind of reversal is this? Is Russia "getting richer the more it fights" or is it deceiving itself?
Siluanov stressed that according to the budget law, Russia has the right to borrow from the domestic market, as well as to introduce yuan borrowing. Could it be that Russia is short of money? Isn't it, didn't you say before that "the more you fight, the richer you get"? Putin even boasted that Russia's economic growth rate would reach 3 in 20236%, which has long been thrown off Western sanctions. But now, it all seems so unrealistic.
The data reveals that Russia's military spending has been rising from 2021 to 2024, from $42.1 billion to $140 billion. In 2023, fiscal revenues will be only $269.3 billion, nearly one-third of which will be spent on defense and military spending. This is the "true portrayal" of Russian finances.
Russia may be in an economic quagmire, and Putin is facing a critical moment: how to support the wartime economy and whether to continue to push towards Kyiv is a historic choice.
For China, this is a "perfect" situation, in the absolute dominance of exchanges. If China wants to help, the United States, Russia and Europe must pay a heavy price.
In the case of Russia, it may be possible to offer stolen Chinese antiquities in exchange, or to provide access to the sea in northeastern China. As for the United States and Europe, if they want to avoid China's explicit support for Russia, they can immediately cut ties with Taiwan and let China achieve reunification at an early date. In addition, the United States and Europe must give China the same market treatment and put an end to discrimination and investigation. Consideration could also be given to the return of stolen Chinese artifacts from the British Museum, the Louvre in France, and others.
In this great power game, nothing is non-negotiable. As Blinken said, "When you're not at the table, you're on the menu." Some may think that such an approach is too opportunistic and undermines the prestige of a great power, but in the moment of this world war, countries and individuals have no choice but to rise to the occasion.
If China's "conditions" cannot be met, China can strictly adhere to its "neutral" position. Just like during World War I and World War, the United States provided supplies to almost all belligerent countries, and the practice of "taking everything from left to right" established the United States' post-war world hegemony. As a new force in international politics, China should certainly not hesitate.
Russia will not collapse. Medvedev has said that Russia has a weapon of mass destruction, and once an existential crisis comes, Russia has the guts to drop nuclear bombs on Washington, Kyiv, Berlin and London. In other words, the tension is now between the United States, Russia and Europe, which are caught in a game of extremes, while China's national and military strength has been greatly preserved because it does not intervene in the war, and it has the right to influence the outcome of the war.
In the exchanges between major countries, business is paramount, and there are no permanent friends, only eternal interests. Russia once again mentioned borrowing from China, which means that the two-year "military operation against Ukraine" has greatly damaged Russia's vitality, and Russia is eager to get out of the economic predicament of "breaking even payments". But the problem is that Russia only talks about borrowing needs and avoids collateral, which makes it difficult for China to express its opinion.
Give Russia some advice: China does not lack natural gas, coal, timber, oil and other materials, and the shortcomings can be obtained through various channels. If Putin wants to cut the loss but is unwilling to give up certain interests, it is entirely possible to stop the war now and sign a peace agreement with Ukraine.
Otherwise, Russia will be passive in its dealings with China and may even have to make concessions. After all, there is an old saying: "It is the uncle who borrows the money, and the grandson who pays the money." "The Chinese side also needs to be careful whether the money lent out will be lost, especially since Russia is still in the whirlpool of war and will eventually achieve a complete victory, remains to be seen.