Conflicting interests of Russia, China, and the United States, the key world powers, create global insecurities, the panelists of the Valdai Discussion Club concluded on October 25, 2016.

“Emerging today is a system where we have three great powers – the United States, China, and Russia,” John Mearsheimer, a political science professor at the University of Chicago said at the Club’s session on global governance problems.

He said that the United States faced two “meaningful challengers,” Russia and China, and that controversies among the three create major global problems and define the direction of global development.

“As a result of the unipolar positions of the United States, the U.S. tries to move NATO further and further eastward, antagonizing Russia. American elites, both Republican and Democratic, failed to appreciate Russia’s security concerns. Americans just refused to understand that,” Mr. Mearsheimer said.

The Ukrainian and the Syrian crises are the best examples of the deterioration in U.S.-Russia relations, and the U.S. failure to hear Russia’s security concerns, in the view of Professor Mearsheimer. He said that Russia had three choices: either to ally with the Chinese, to join the United States, or to remain neutral.

“Situation now looks like Russia is siding with China. Americans have foolishly driven Russia into the arms of the Chinese,” Mr. Mearsheimer said.

Kevin Rudd, the former Prime Minister of Australia, agreed that the world was ruled by the three dominant powers, a situation that has recently led to an “explosion of uncertainties.”

What complicates international relations today is that the trio does not always observe the rules of global order, as it happened in 2003 when the United States invaded Iraq, he noted. This undermines international governing institutions, including the U.N. Security Council.

“The three major powers need to reflect that order is better than disorder,” Mr. Rudd said.

The Valdai Discussion Club was established in Russia in 2004. It seeks to promote dialogue between Russian and international intellectual elites on global political, economic, and social developments. The 2016 session was hosted in the Russian resort city of Sochi.