>>13371887>After the death of Stalin, relations between the Soviet Union and China became very hostile.The hostility didn't emerge until 1956 due to Khrushchev starting his de-stalinization process which Mao regarded as a personal attack on him.
>If Russia were to fall from some sort of nuclear conflict, China would be left very vulnerable.It suffices to assume here what would happen if Putin was ousted and replaced by a pro-Western president.
Now, there's a very good reason why China initiated the Belt and Road initiative. It guarantuees that China trades with more than one country and can sustain its own needs even if some countries may choose to drop out. It's Russia who depends on China. Not China. It doesn't come as a surprise that China switches its own political position all the time. It supported Russia in the '50s, supported USA in the '70s, supported Russia again in the '80s, then became mostly neutral and only recently became more pro-Russian. Still to this day, China never embraced the Crimea annexation unlike many other decisively pro-Russian nations.
>China wouldn't be able to exert any sort of influence on the global scaleIt already exerts a huge influence. North Korea, Burma and Central Asia depend on China to a degree that practically turns them into client states. China also has friendly relations with Pakistan and Iran.
>and Western powers would be pushing China left and righOnly a question of years until the West has deteriorated so much in power that they can't really push anything. China plays the long game.
>China would likely take nuclear war with Russia as a good scenario to take Taiwan, and the USA would likely try to take back Taiwan, which would bring China into a third world war.There's not going to be a nuclear war. China wants to take Taiwan since 1949 and hasn't done so because of nuclear threats by China.
