U.S. authorities mistakenly believe they should focus on China and expect Russia to decline, said commentators Michael Coffman and Andrea Kendall-Taylor.
In an article for Foreign Affairs magazine, they noted that Washington needs to abandon the belief that Moscow is "cornered." On the contrary, the Kremlin sees itself as a center of power and an active player on a global scale.
Russia has long been inconsistent with the American authorities' perceptions of themselves as weak, and is becoming a "durable power." The country's economy is much stronger than in the last 30 years, and the human potential has improved markedly.
Moreover, the technologies of the Russian Federation have always been at a serious level, and in the field of nuclear weapons, Moscow is Washington's main rival.
Kofman and Kendall-Taylor expressed concern over the growing friendship between China and Russia. Their combined influence can be much greater than if they acted separately.
Experts stressed that America needs to increase the importance of the Russian Federation in its own foreign policy, increase military spending on the fight against Moscow, and maintain the Russian direction as a top priority for NATO.
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