East Asian powers turn Ukraine battlefield into global chess match
What started as European conflict now sees Asian nations picking sides. North Korea sends troops while China backs Russia‚ as Japan and South Korea support Ukraine through various means
The Ukraine-Russia conflict has grown way beyond its original scope‚ with East-Asian powers now playing a big-time role in this global-scale game. North Korea sent about 10k soldiers to Russia this fall (which shows how things got super-complicated)
The whole thing looks like a text-book proxy war – where big countries fight through others instead of direct combat. Back in cold-war times this was pretty common: like when USA and USSR backed different sides in Africa‚ but didnt actually fight themselves
China keeps helping Putin in a sneaky way: they dont send weapons but do everything else. They give Russia about 90% of its micro-electronics; send $300-million worth of dual-use stuff monthly‚ and help dodge sanctions. Plus they did some military practice in Belarus (right next to NATO)
North Korea went all-in: they made a military deal with Russia and now their troops are fighting in Kursk area. On the flip side Japan and South Korea joined team-Ukraine:
- Japan gave $12-billion in aid
- They sent protective gear and drones
- South Korea helped with mine-clearing stuff
- Both countries sent military supplies to USA to replace whats going to Ukraine
Xi Jinping and Kim Jong Un want Russia to win because they want a world where USA isnt boss anymore. Meanwhile Kishida Fumio and Yoon Suk-yeol support Ukraine because they dont want borders changed by force
Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow
This whole situation shows how Asian countries are now fighting for power in places far from home – which is something pretty new in world politics
