” China, Like Russia, Is Pressured by Reinvigorated U.S. Alliances”
“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine produced the opposite of what Moscow’s foreign policy had long sought by driving its neighbors into NATO. After boosting its military, China is now seeing a similar strengthening of U.S.-led alliances in the Pacific.
The rapprochement between Seoul and Tokyo, reflected in a plan released Monday by Seoul to compensate South Koreans forced to work in Japan during World War II, marks the latest example of U.S. friends and allies in Asia building a network of ties in a way that is unwelcome in Beijing.
The Philippines under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is giving U.S. forces more access to its bases. Taiwan has brought in more U.S. forces to its territory to help with training. Australia allied with the U.S. and U.K. to obtain nuclear submarines. And Japan is nearly doubling defense spending and linking its military operations closer to the U.S., calling China its biggest security challenge.”
As I’ve said from the beginning, the USA is the biggest winner from this war.
“Ukraine war has made it easier for US to isolate China in the Pacific”
“A year after Russia invaded Ukraine, Xi Jinping’s backing of Vladimir Putin has opened the door for the United States and partners in the Pacific to shore up sometimes frayed relationships to the detriment of Beijing.
In the past few months alone, Japan has pledged to double defense spending and acquire long-range weapons from the US; South Korea has acknowledged that stability in the Taiwan Strait is essential to its security; the Philippines has announced new US base access rights and is talking about joint patrols of the South China Sea with Australia, Japan and the United States.”
https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/05/asia/ukraine-war-us-pacific-alliances-intl-hnk/index.html
Speaking of Taiwan - they paid the US $19 billion for arms along time back, but have received nothing. Biden getting his cut from Xi.