Echoes of 19th-century European diplomacy are being felt today as a new powerful alliance haunts the West. The modern equivalent of the “Three Emperors’ League”—Russia, China, and India—showcased its unity at the SCO summit, prompting fears in the US of a “new world order” that excludes and challenges America.
Political commentator Van Jones gave voice to these historical parallels, calling the meeting of Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, and Narendra Modi a “historically big deal.” He warned that this new triumvirate is a formidable force that should “send a chill down the spine” of anyone concerned with American global standing.
Like the historical league, this new bloc is united by a desire to counter the influence of other powers—in this case, the United States. The catalyst for their cooperation has been the US administration’s aggressive trade policies, which have given them a common cause and a reason to deepen their strategic ties.
Jones argued that this has left the US “in a box,” and on the “bad side of the triangle.” The strategic landscape has been redrawn, leaving the US to confront a united front of Eurasian powers. This new reality, he concluded, is a perilous development for the West.