At the Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025, in the abundant Arctic air, two presidents — Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin — met. On paper, the topic was peace in Ukraine and stability in the Arctic. In reality, the main American goal was and remains the exclusion of China from the Russian strategic framework. Beijing, almost on the other side of the world, was not asleep, following every move in Anchorage. China knows that, whatever the outcome, its role in Russia’s geopolitical construction will remain unquestioned. Let’s try to imagine the scenes of that thriller.

The war in Ukraine is not merely an armed conflict between two states; it is the clearest signal that history has once again set the wheel of imperial power in motion. Russian imperialism is not a chapter from the 19th century, but an active and dangerous paradigm of the 21st century.