Indo-Pacific formulations of the Trump administration.

1.14. The Russia Factor

♤ Russia and China had frosty relations for much of the Soviet era (Sino Soviet rift of the 1960s). The two countries faced off in 1969 border skirmishes. This led China to open up to the USA in 1971.

♤ However, in the recent years there has been a greater convergence between the two countries on the issues of western interventionism, SCO, Syria, Crimea and South China Sea. In 2014 the two sides inked a 30-year, $400bn (£237bn) deal for Gazprom to deliver Russian gas to China in a deal that underscores Russia's shift towards Asia amid strained relations with the west.