https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/01/ukr...gM9Q7z5uusyjvefD1EfOIoikFOUQHoixnkJaq_4_2CzMI
Relations between the U.S. and Russia, which are already tense, took another turn for the worse Wednesday after Russia said it was ordering U.S. Embassy staff who have been in Moscow for more than three years to fly home by the end of January.
It said it had resorted to “retaliatory measures” after the Russian ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, said 27 Russian diplomats and their families would have to leave the U.S. on Jan. 30, and another 27 diplomats would need to depart by June, because their visas have not been extended by the American authorities.
Sending the most seasoned diplomats home from both countries is not a smart move.
To say these nations are playing dirty is putting it mildly. Russia and China are real problems.
That's not to say that the US doesn't play dirty either. We destabilize governments and impose our will in lots of visible and less visible ways.
Russia and China have ended up in very similar places despite somewhat odd paths. To describe them as authoritarian states is mild. These are basically fascist states. If you drop the need for ethnic cleansing or racial cleansing...they pretty much fit the mold. You have cults of personality around a central figure (Putin, Mao). You have a symbiosis of capitalism that is only restricted by the ultimate authority of the state which can bend industry to its own ends. You have state controlled media and propaganda. You have a deep push towards a nationalistic- militaristic culture.
The result is two nations that have grown into large wealthy centrally controlled international actors with dangerous militaries and the ability to force companies into compliance with state ends. They are simply smart enough to do it without destroying those industries.
They may have socialist/communist roots...but they resulted in totalitarian fascist states with fake elections and they've more successfully hidden the oppression of the population.
They know what the game is and how it's played. Their big advantage is their ability to use private citizens as state actors. This is largely evident in Chinese hackers stealing military and business data from us....while Russian hackers steal money from our companies and spread disinformation campaigns.
I'd like to say there's an easy answer here...there isn't. Our best and brightest go to the companies under attack and we don't really compel them to do anything. No one here would tolerate the sort of fascist tactics that they openly employ....nearly half the country is more comfortable with riots and looting than police using tear gas. Their cultures are solidifying into strong national identities....ours is currently fracturing for pretty stupid reasons.
I don't think most people in the US understand the ground we are losing here by sticking to a post WW2 military model that is increasingly less relevant and the imbalance by their ability to direct their companies to state interests and our inability to do so.
This will be a back and forth for awhile....I think the result will be that nations will fear Russian and Chinese economic sanctions more than US diplomatic efforts/sanctions.
I guess if it were my choice...I'd be exploring ways to destabilize and ultimately devastate these nations economically and culturally....to the end of breaking the centralization of power. Their strength is also their weakness. Once the hold is broken, the centralization destabilizes, and a power struggle ensues to see who fills the vacuum.
That slows them down if not stops them for awhile.
