Russia is sharing important battlefield lessons it has gleaned from its Ukraine invasion with China, Iran, and North Korea, a leading analyst argued in Foreign Affairs.
The assessment contradicts Western conventional wisdom that Moscow has approached the conflict more as a meat grinder than with strategic nous. “Russia realizes that warfare is changing, so its military must change, as well,” the piece said.
It comes amid mounting evidence of cooperation between what Washington hawks have dubbed the “Axis of Upheaval”: China is reportedly helping Iran evade US sanctions with a barter-like trading system, and is an increasingly critical investor in Russia, while Beijing’s premier is due in Pyongyang this week.