I read on a pro-russian site that if there is a strategy behind it, it might be to break Russia out of the China/BRICS alliance and use them as an ally against the "real" enemy, which would be China.
It would make some kind of sense and match the rhetoric of a lot of republicans - but on the other hand, it also sounds awfully risky especially if the plan is more or less known to anyone?
Whoever thinks that Russia will ever consider the US as an ally probably doesn't have a great sense of how Russia views itself and the US.
They'll play the part of ally, to a limited degree, when their stooges in Western Democracies don't have any demands of them. But no amount of trade will change their priorities as far as diminishing the dollar with something they at least partially control.
That's pure wishful thinking. Russia spans 11 time zones, but most of Russia's population lives near Europe, west of the Ural mountains. They have as little to do with China as other people of Europe. The "mental center" of Russia is close to Eastern Europe, and their greatest ambition is to dominate the continent, for a variety of reasons that would take too long to explain. They see the US as the archenemy, because the US has stood in their way since the end of WWII.
Russia is willing to play an ally, but only insofar as it brings them closer to what they really want: Europe. Anyone who doubts this is utterly clueless about Russia and not worth listening to.
Russia doesn't even have one of the 10 largest economies in the world, has shown its military to be made up of the rotting corpses of cold war technology, and (outside of the cities near europe) is a backwards shithole. I can't even keep track of how many military leaders have been thrown out of windows.
Other than land what, exactly, makes them a useful ally for the future? A willingness to throw bodies into a meat grinder?
That's the real kicker for me about all of this - Russia is weak. Trump is bowing down to a loser.
The Russian people are victimized by the kleptocratic petro-regime in charge, and the American people will be victimized the same.
It's best not to see these as the actions of governments acting in national interests, but as a section of an trans-national class acting in their own interest. With borders and statecraft being some of the pieces on the board they play with.
Lines between countries are for schmoes like you and I. Trump owns capital and etc assets around the whole world, just like Putin.
Didn't work for Clinton, didn't work for Bush, didn't work for Obama, won't work for Trump.
This is the siren's song of Western Geopolitics. Believing that it will work This Time (tm) is a surefire way to get wrecked.
Russia borders China, unlike the rest of The West. Why would Russia ever sign up to put themselves on the front lines of tensions between the West and China. But people delude themselves into believing that they will, because it would be very convenient.
That seems somewhat laughable? Pro-Russian folks who are grasping at straws to spin what's happening so it doesn't look so bad?
I can't imagine Putin allowing his country to be "used" like that (regardless of how desperate his situation gets), especially considering that China is literally next door and would absolutely destroy Russia in any kind of military conflict.
It would make some kind of sense and match the rhetoric of a lot of republicans - but on the other hand, it also sounds awfully risky especially if the plan is more or less known to anyone?