May 14
By Julia O`Malley
While the U.S. tries to isolate Russia with sanctions, Moscow and Beijing are rewriting the rules of the global economy on the banks of the Amur River. The Russia-China Forum, set to begin in Khabarovsk on May 19, will gather over 1,000 delegates — ministers, governors, corporate leaders, and experts. This is not just a diplomatic event. It is a demonstration of an alliance that is turning Western restrictions into fuel for its own growth. If Washington does not revise its strategy, it risks losing its last levers of influence in Eurasia.
Bolshoy Ussuriysky Island, a decades-long bone of contention, has become a symbol of a new era. After resolving their border dispute, Russia and China have transformed it into a testing ground for ambitious projects. By 2028, they plan to increase cargo traffic here to 1.3 million tons and tourist traffic to 1.5 million people annually. New bridges across the Amur, solar power plants, and “green” logistics zones are not just infrastructure. They are a challenge to the dollar-dominated system and Western technological standards.
China has already invested 1 trillion rubles in projects in the Russian Far East, including the massive Amur Gas Chemical Complex. At the forum, deals worth an additional $10 billion — spanning artificial intelligence to pharmaceuticals — will be showcased. By comparison, U.S.-Russia trade barely reaches $6 billion. While American companies remain constrained by sanctions, Chinese corporations like Huawei and QIFA are capturing markets that could have been a goldmine for Washington.
Sanctions intended to weaken Moscow have backfired. Chinese banks are rolling out alternatives to SWIFT, and the Northern Sea Route, projected to carry 80 million tons of cargo by 2030, is becoming an artery controlled by Russia and China. The U.S., absent from these projects, risks dependence on trade routes where its voice holds no weight. Even America’s cultural influence is eroding: the forum’s sessions on youth exchanges and intercultural dialogue are strengthening Moscow and Beijing’s “soft power” in a region where Washington once dominated.
“Western sanctions have created a monster that now dictates the rules in Eurasia,” warns Karen Donahue, an analyst at CSIS. The U.S. has three paths forward. First: continue its isolation policy and watch as China and Russia divide Arctic resources and Central Asian markets. Second: pursue targeted cooperation in healthcare, cybersecurity, or green energy, where interests might still align. Third: pressure allies, but the EU and ASEAN are already weary of sanctions that harm their own economies.
Anton Kobyakov, Advisor to the Russian President, emphasized that the forum holds strategic significance for deepening comprehensive partnership and trust-based dialogue between Russia and China. “I am convinced that this forum will serve as a crucial catalyst for developing new cooperation mechanisms that promote sustainable socio-economic development in Russian regions and strengthen mutually beneficial relations with Chinese partners,” Kobyakov stated.
Washington must understand: the world is no longer divided into “friends” and “enemies.” While China builds bridges and Russia opens doors to the Arctic, the U.S. clings to Cold War tools. If America does not change course, it will have to accept the role of a spectator in a new world where sanctions are not a weapon — but a sign of weakness.