In retrospect, after further thought and reflection, this was not even true at the time it was written. Under Vladimir Putin, Russian foreign policy was very expansionist and, as we all know today, played the central role in propping-up Bashar al-Assad’s government in the Syrian civil war. In comparison, so far the Chinese have avoided Middle Eastern embroilment.
This entire essay is half-baked. Don’t bother with it. Chapter 37 of David Friedman’s The Machinery of Freedom does a far better job explaining the perils of violent revolution. Click here to read David’s great book on his website!