Moscow Looks to the East

Now that it has walked away from the INF treaty, the U.S. is looking to deploy nuclear missiles in the western Pacific against China. Whether it finds a spot to place them is another story.

The U.S. and China are drawing most of Pyongyang's attention, but Kim Jong Un's trip to Russia shows that North Korea doesn't lack for diplomatic alternatives.

With the standoff between Moscow and the West seemingly here to stay, the Kremlin is beating a path to Asia, Africa and the Americas to drum up economic and security ties.

A second military base in Kyrgyzstan would not only help Russia stem militancy but would also bolster its position as the outside power with the greatest influence in Central Asia as the U.S. floats an Afghan withdrawal.

Beijing is eager to tap into the Arctic's abundant resources and take advantage of shipping lanes that will open as sea ice recedes. But it will need to muscle into the region first.

For Moscow and Beijing, the more Washington tries to squeeze them, the smaller their differences with each other become.

Washington is leaning on India and other countries around the globe to snub Russian arms in favor of U.S. weaponry. The United States, however, would press New Delhi at its peril.