Yet even here, not all is well for Beijing. Perhaps Putin is Tojo to Xi’s Hitler—or perhaps he is Mussolini, the weaker but truculent ally whose missteps blow back on the stronger.72 The Russian invasion of Ukraine created problems for China, bringing down international scrutiny and suspicion on Xi for his close relationship with Putin.73 A China that stays close to Russia will be a China that grows more estranged from much of the world.
