Derek Grossman is a senior defense analyst at the nonprofit, nonpartisan Rand Corporation. He formerly served as an adviser at the Pentagon.
Beijing maintains zero alliances, and its partnerships are mostly with pariah states

Xi attempts to shake hands with Putin during a meeting in Moscow in June 2019: they remain deeply suspicious of each other. © Reuters
Derek Grossman is a senior defense analyst at the nonprofit, nonpartisan Rand Corporation. He formerly served as an adviser at the Pentagon.