Russia is becoming a “puppet state” of China after its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Israeli historian Yuval Noah Harari told a business forum in Taipei yesterday.
The Sapiens author, who is a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, delivered the remarks in a pre-recorded video at the forum, which was organized by Taiwan-based Global Views Monthly.
On a geopolitical level, the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine “has basically destroyed Russia’s position as a great power” and is “turning Russia into a puppet state of China,” Harari said.
Moscow is now “in a struggle” with NATO, which has supplied Ukraine in its fight against Russian forces with light and heavy equipment, he said.
As a result, Russia has become “increasingly dependent” on China, he said.
Beijing has refrained from publicly condemning or endorsing Moscow, its strategic partner, for the invasion.
It has called for a “peaceful resolution” to the war while opposing sanctions on Russia by the US and other countries.
At the end of June, Washington blacklisted five companies based in China for allegedly supporting the Russian military.
Harari said that Beijing was “making the biggest profit” out of the invasion in a geopolitical sense and “getting into a stronger position” by staying out of the war.
Russian nationalists should oppose the invasion, as it is undermining Moscow’s own interests, he said.
“Russia is a rich country with very, very poor citizens,” he said. “The sooner this war ends, the better it is for Russia.”
Given that Moscow had waged one war after another over the years, were it to “get away with it” in Ukraine, people would see “more [Russian President Vladimir] Putins all over the world,” he added.
Harari expressed concern that the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing war had pushed the world into “an era of deglobalization” with “greater disunity.”
The fact that countries now trust one another less has affected the global economy by disrupting supply chains and fueling inflation, he said.
At the same time, geopolitical tensions have prompted many countries to increase their defense budgets at the expense of healthcare, education, welfare and scientific development to tackle climate change, Harari said.
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