[19Fortyfive] China Has A ‘Stealth Playbook’ To Carve Up Russia
Key Points and Summary – Chinese media platform NetEase ran a Dec. 14 article urging Beijing to “prepare for the worst” if Russia fractures, arguing the Russian Far East’s 7 million square kilometers should not be “lost.”
-The piece frames the region as a resource treasure for China and a burden for Moscow, then outlines an “annexation by stealth” playbook: deepen investment, move people and money in, lock long contracts, promote pro-China local elites, introduce the yuan, and finance infrastructure with loans that create dependence.
-It also cites “unequal treaties” from 1858–1860 to revive territorial claims as Russian security officials quietly warn Beijing is encroaching. |