Photo: Xinhua News Agency

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview Sunday that Moscow sees Washington's desire to drive a wedge between Russia and China, but it is not going to worsen its relations with Beijing just to make the US happy, according to TASS Russian News Agency.

The US has been trying to rope in other countries to form an alliance to contain China. Although many US politicians regard both China and Russia as threats, there have been voices recently advocating roping in Russia to curb China's influence. For example, former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger reportedly advised US President Donald Trump to work with Russia to contain China. However, the delusional US attempt is doomed to fail.

Some American people still cannot get rid of their cold-war mentality. The US strategy of containing the Soviet Union together with China worked in the 1970s, and China-Soviet Union relations were tense back then. But the situation is completely different in the 21st century. In the current globalization era, Russia no longer has a Soviet-style ideological frenzy. The strategy of forming an alliance to contain another country has also long been outdated. 

China-Russia relations have developed smoothly in recent decade. The two countries agreed in June to upgrade their relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era. Their cooperation has comprehensively covered all important areas. During Lavrov's phone conversation with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday, he said that no person or force can provoke the strategic mutual trust between Russia and China. The US should see the whole situation clearly and stop provoking alienation between the two countries.

It is even difficult for the US itself to cut off exchanges with China. Then how can it successfully make other countries choose the US side and contain China? China-US comprehensive decoupling seems unrealistic. For example, China-US technological decoupling will bring disputes to the two countries' standard system and affect the global high-tech business landscape. The two largest economies' economic decoupling will also add instabilities to the world.

More importantly, China is integrating more closely into the world. According to the Statistical Communiqué of Chinese Outward Foreign Direct Investment in 2018, China's overseas investment covers 188 countries and regions. China has become the world's second-largest overseas investor and more and more Chinese companies are going global. Meanwhile, China is further deepening its reform and opening-up and expanding its connection with the world. Both China and the world need such a connection.

This being the case, it is impossible for the US to rope in other countries to contain China. The US should realize that neither Russia nor any other country is willing to become its pawn to contain China. China is marching toward the center of the world stage, but the US is retreating to an island of the Cold War era and unilateralism.