Recent US foreign policy is being described as a “feather in Putin’s cap,” as it appears to be bolstering America’s chief adversaries. The image of the Russian leader standing alongside the leaders of China and India has been cited by analyst Van Jones as proof that US actions are pushing other world powers into Moscow’s orbit.
Jones called the SCO summit gathering a “historically big deal,” expressing alarm over the apparent bonhomie between Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, and Narendra Modi. This trio’s unity, he argued, signifies a “new world order” that should “send a chill down the spine of every American” because it fundamentally undermines US global strategy.
This newfound solidarity is largely seen as a reaction to the Trump administration’s confrontational stance on trade. The use of tariffs has created a common cause for nations that might otherwise have divergent interests, allowing leaders like Putin to position themselves at the center of a new anti-US coalition.
The result, according to Jones, is that the US is now “in a box.” The country has been strategically outmaneuvered and finds itself on the “bad side of the triangle.” This new geopolitical landscape, where “it’s everybody against us,” is a dangerous outcome that weakens America’s position on the world stage.