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GRAPHIC TRUTH: RELATIONSHIP ON THE ROCKS

GRAPHIC TRUTH: RELATIONSHIP ON THE ROCKS

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin may be able to form, as the US president likes to say, a “great relationship” – but at the popular level there is still little love lost between the American and Russian publics. Where once popular perceptions of each other were overwhelmingly positive, the optimism that characterized the early post-Soviet years has steadily given way to mutual suspicion. Here’s how it’s all gone (down) over the past quarter of a century.

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​Chief Superintendent of the police force's National Security Department Steve Li Kwai-wah speaks at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building after the verdict in the national security collusion trial of pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai, in Hong Kong, China, on December 15, 2025.

Chief Superintendent of the police force's National Security Department Steve Li Kwai-wah speaks at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building after the verdict in the national security collusion trial of Jimmy Lai, founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, in Hong Kong, China, on December 15, 2025.

REUTERS/Lam Yik
156: After a 156-day trial, Hong Kong’s High Court found media tycoon Jimmy Lai guilty on national security charges on Monday. Lai, who advocated for democracy in the semi-autonomous Chinese city before the 2019 crackdown, now faces life imprisonment. The decision is another blow for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. [...]
People pay respects at Bondi Pavilion to victims of a shooting during a Jewish holiday celebration at Bondi Beach, in Sydney, Australia, December 15, 2025.

People pay respects at Bondi Pavilion to victims of a shooting during a Jewish holiday celebration at Bondi Beach, in Sydney, Australia, December 15, 2025.

REUTERS/Hollie Adams
Australia’s Jewish community in mourning againA Hanukkah celebration at Australia’s Bondi Beach yesterday turned into a bloodbath when a pair of gunmen opened fire on the crowd, killing 15 and injuring dozens more. It was the worst mass shooting in Australia since 1996, a massacre that prompted the country to impose strict gun laws. The toll this [...]
An ally under suspicion

Donald Trump at the NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium. - 25/05/2017 - Belgium / Brussels - Julien Mattia / Le Pictorium.

Julien Mattia via Reuters Connect
In an unprecedented move last week, Denmark labeled its ally the United States as a potential security risk. A report by the Danish Defense Intelligence Service argued Washington is using its economic and military power to “assert its will,” creating new security risks for Europe and for Greenland, Denmark’s semi-autonomous territory.NATO allies [...]
​Then-US President George W. Bush with then-People's Republic of China President Jiang Zemin following their meeting at Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, on October 25, 2002.

Then-US President George W. Bush waves as he stands with then-People's Republic of China President Jiang Zemin after the two gave statements to the press following their meeting at Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, on October 25, 2002.

Twenty-five years ago, Destiny’s Child, NSYNC, and Britney Spears were atop the US charts, “Google” was a little known search website with a weird name, and two things happened that would shape the world we live in today, where populism defines politics and great power competition is back. First, Congress passed a bill that paved the way for China [...]