During an interview aired on Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN International’s “Amanpour,” U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel stated that he’s not sure China, North Korea, Russia, and Iran have formed an alliance, but rather “an agreement among players that are isolated in the world.”
Host Christiane Amanpour asked, [relevant exchange begins around 6:05] “China is involved, too. China has a certainly friendly relationship with Russia. Does this grouping, this alliance pose a threat to the United States and its Western allies? China, North Korea, Russia, and whoever else, Iran.”
Emanuel responded, “I’m not sure I would call it an alliance. What we have in the United States [are] allies and alliances, built on trust, built on common interests, and, more importantly, common values. This is kind of like an agreement among players that are isolated in the world. And I really do think the characteristics that define them and unite them are one[s] of aggression, oppression, and coercion. That does unite them. And it also is a telling sign, now that those characteristics unite them, that the people in their own countries — remember, think about this, Iran is literally coming up to the one-year anniversary where they’re scared of their own people, because they were killing their own people who were literally trying to stand up for freedom. You have kids fleeing both St. Petersburg, Moscow, Beijing, and Shanghai, and also in North Korea. That is a telling sign. And I think, sometimes those of us in the West — included, myself, you — we forget how powerful a seductive force freedom is. Now, this is not a welcome sign, this alliance…we do think our embargo’s having an impact on Russia’s ability to wage the war. That said, it is a major, major political embarrassment for Russia to be not the sponsor of North Korea, but dependent on North Korea for their military capacity. That is not where a superpower wants to be.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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