Comrades Aligned - A Framework of Alignment Towards Unravelling Modern Chinese-Russian Strategic Cooperation

Sammanfattning: Since the end of the Cold War, modern Russian and Chinese relations have been characterized by strategic defense, economic, and diplomatic cooperation. This strategic cooperation has become increasingly coordinated, with the motives behind Russo-Sino cooperation increasingly becoming the focus of academic debate. While both states declare that it is not an “alliance,” other terms have been used, such as “alignment”. This concept has only recently gained greater academic attention. This paper presents a theoretical framework on alignment as a process and its constituent mechanisms. Drawing on neo-classical realism and alliance theory, this paper bridges theoretical IR concepts to empirical data, employing a case study methodology that utilizes congruence analysis. It highlights that alignment is a present feature of modern Russian-Chinese relations and it is driven by their perceptions of threat and the global and regional balances of power.