What Russia Doesn't Want You to Know About Siberia

00:29:00
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOnBf4xxkKw

Summary

TLDRThe video analyzes the historical tensions between Russia and the Siberian territories and the potential implications of China's growing interest in the region. It highlights Russia's fear of losing Siberia due to its rich resources and China's ambition to reclaim historical territories. The speaker discusses Russia's current military recruiting strategies in Siberia, the strategic importance of Bulo Usisi Island, and the possible reactions from both Siberians and China that could lead to either secession or territorial conflict. The video emphasizes the complexities of the situation influenced by recent events like the war in Ukraine and Russia's diminished strength.

Takeaways

  • 🗺️ Siberia's dark history shapes modern geopolitics.
  • 🚨 Russia fears China reclaiming Siberian territories.
  • 🔍 Bulo Usisi Island is strategically crucial for China.
  • 👥 Disproportionate conscription from Siberian villages by Russia continues.
  • ⚔️ China's historical claims to Siberia could lead to conflict.
  • 📉 Russia's military weakness may encourage territorial aggression.
  • 🌀 Siberia's diverse republics pose a challenge for central control.
  • 📜 China's actions reflect a desire to reverse past humiliations.
  • 🌏 The risk of combined internal secession movements and external invasion is real.
  • 🛡️ The geopolitical landscape of Siberia is evolving rapidly.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    Siberia's dark historical context reveals Russia's fear of losing control over the region to China, which has been attempting to reclaim ancestral lands, raising questions about the future stability of Russian territories.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    The presentation of a massive trail system in Utah serves as a metaphor for potential control points in Siberia, where territorial debates with China are highlighted, including recent losses Russia has faced, emphasizing the urgency of this geopolitical tension.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    Siberia, known for its harsh conditions, is a collection of diverse but sparsely populated republics historically viewed by Moscow as a resource colony, and its dark history of subjugation complicates any consideration of secession from Russia.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:20:00

    Modern dynamics show that Moscow's prolonged efforts to prevent unification among Siberians continue, especially through military recruitment from Siberian villages following the war in Ukraine, leading to concerns regarding the depletion of local populations.

  • 00:20:00 - 00:29:00

    The geopolitical landscape raises fears about potential Chinese incursions into Siberia, especially given historical territorial disputes, and questions whether China may exploit Russia's weakened state while aiming to reclaim lands lost during its 'century of humiliation.'

Show more

Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • Why is Russia afraid of China taking Siberia?

    Russia fears that China may reclaim historical lands in Siberia due to its resource richness and strategic importance.

  • How has Russia treated Siberian populations historically?

    Historically, Russia has seen Siberia as a resource colony, often subjugating native populations and preventing their unification.

  • What recent actions has China taken regarding Siberia?

    China has quietly claimed Bulo Usisi Island, an important strategic location, from Russia and is developing it.

  • Why is the recruitment of Siberians by Russia problematic?

    It disproportionately affects Siberian villages and may reduce local opposition to Moscow's control.

  • What is the significance of Bulo Usisi Island?

    It is a strategic point that provides potential military access to the Pacific Ocean.

  • Could Siberian territories ever secede from Russia?

    While theoretically possible, various factors including low population density and lack of unification hinder such movements.

  • What is the historical claim of China over Siberia?

    China claims that historical parts of Siberia were taken during a period of unequal treaties known as the 'Century of Humiliation.'

  • Is there a possibility for a military conflict over Siberia?

    Yes, particularly if China perceives a weakened Russia as an opportunity to reclaim historical lands.

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Subtitles
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  • 00:00:00
    Siberia has a very dark history that
  • 00:00:03
    actually Echoes into the modern day
  • 00:00:05
    Russia is very afraid of China taking
  • 00:00:10
    Siberia from them China has actually
  • 00:00:13
    made a move to reclaim a portion of
  • 00:00:16
    their historical lands from Russia
  • 00:00:18
    Russia has
  • 00:00:20
    disproportionately been conscripting and
  • 00:00:23
    recruiting from Siberian Villages a
  • 00:00:26
    deliberate attempt to keep the Siberian
  • 00:00:28
    people separate because Moscow has
  • 00:00:32
    always feared their
  • 00:00:35
    unification hey guys Paul warberg coming
  • 00:00:37
    to you back from Utah today and today I
  • 00:00:40
    am at AC Crossroads literally everywhere
  • 00:00:44
    I look there is a trail there's a trail
  • 00:00:46
    there there's a trail there there's a
  • 00:00:48
    trail there there's two Trails behind me
  • 00:00:51
    and they all converge at this one spot
  • 00:00:54
    now this is a massive trail system that
  • 00:00:56
    goes off in every direction for miles
  • 00:00:58
    and miles and miles and miles but
  • 00:01:00
    theoretically if I wanted to control
  • 00:01:03
    everything that goes on here I would
  • 00:01:05
    just have to stand and control this one
  • 00:01:08
    spot that is going to come into play a
  • 00:01:11
    little bit later in this video as we
  • 00:01:14
    explore a very important topic today
  • 00:01:17
    we're asking an important question could
  • 00:01:20
    Russia ever lose
  • 00:01:23
    Siberia would any Siberian territories
  • 00:01:26
    ever secede from Russia or could any
  • 00:01:29
    Iberian territories ever be forcibly
  • 00:01:32
    taken from Russia which at first might
  • 00:01:35
    sound like kind of a crazy topic Until
  • 00:01:38
    you realize that actually within the
  • 00:01:40
    past year Russia has already lost some
  • 00:01:43
    Siberian land to China who happens to
  • 00:01:47
    have taken a Crossroads in Siberia from
  • 00:01:50
    Russia which we'll talk about a little
  • 00:01:53
    bit later in this video as we all know
  • 00:01:56
    because of Russia's invasion in Ukraine
  • 00:01:59
    Russia is right now at the weakest point
  • 00:02:01
    it has probably ever been since the
  • 00:02:03
    Soviet Union collapsed that is creating
  • 00:02:07
    lots of different events some of which
  • 00:02:10
    people are noticing some of which people
  • 00:02:12
    are not noticing just due to their sheer
  • 00:02:16
    volume and today I want to shed light on
  • 00:02:18
    some events that very few people have
  • 00:02:20
    noticed now as we open up today's
  • 00:02:22
    discussion it's important that we start
  • 00:02:24
    by level setting on what Siberia
  • 00:02:27
    actually is beyond just being a massive
  • 00:02:30
    Wilderness Zone in the eastern half of
  • 00:02:33
    Russia Siberia of course is famous for
  • 00:02:36
    its harsh Winters and for being one of
  • 00:02:39
    the most desolate places on Earth but
  • 00:02:43
    most people don't actually know
  • 00:02:44
    siberia's history which plays very
  • 00:02:47
    deeply into the topic we're going to
  • 00:02:48
    discuss today what Siberia is is
  • 00:02:52
    actually a collection of very sparsely
  • 00:02:55
    populated republics with several
  • 00:02:58
    different nationalities of people who
  • 00:03:00
    have been there for a very long time and
  • 00:03:04
    Siberia has always been approached
  • 00:03:07
    essentially as a resource colony of
  • 00:03:10
    Moscow if you look at Russia on a map
  • 00:03:13
    especially if you look at Satellite
  • 00:03:15
    nighttime photos of Russia on a map you
  • 00:03:17
    will see some Stark differences between
  • 00:03:21
    Western Russia and Eastern Russia
  • 00:03:23
    roughly divided by the Euro mountains
  • 00:03:25
    that run like a spine and cut the
  • 00:03:27
    country in half on the western side of
  • 00:03:30
    the Ural Mountains you will find pretty
  • 00:03:33
    much every major Russian city with a few
  • 00:03:35
    exceptions that are now in Siberia in
  • 00:03:37
    the modern day this includes things like
  • 00:03:39
    Moscow and St Petersburg and the Russian
  • 00:03:41
    seat of power this is where the Russian
  • 00:03:44
    Elite have always lived and it is the
  • 00:03:46
    more temperate more comfortable part of
  • 00:03:49
    Russia that is more conducive to large
  • 00:03:51
    populations it's basically a big flat
  • 00:03:54
    plane that is fertile and very similar
  • 00:03:59
    to any other Eastern European country on
  • 00:04:02
    the eastern half of the Euro mountains
  • 00:04:04
    as cold and harsh Arctic conditions that
  • 00:04:08
    very few people have ever lived in now
  • 00:04:10
    Siberia has a very dark history that
  • 00:04:14
    actually Echoes into the modern day and
  • 00:04:17
    leads to some of the topics that we'll
  • 00:04:18
    discuss in this video about if Siberia
  • 00:04:21
    might ever be willing to seced when
  • 00:04:24
    Moscow first discovered Siberia they
  • 00:04:27
    discovered that it was full of a very
  • 00:04:29
    valuable resource at that time Furs
  • 00:04:33
    which were worth their weight and gold
  • 00:04:36
    because the animals in Siberia endured
  • 00:04:39
    such harsh Winters these animals
  • 00:04:41
    developed very thick fur coats to fight
  • 00:04:44
    back against this weather and that made
  • 00:04:46
    their fur coats very valuable in Western
  • 00:04:49
    Europe which did not have access to Furs
  • 00:04:51
    that were this high of quality but the
  • 00:04:54
    problem was that the conditions that
  • 00:04:56
    created these furs also made them very
  • 00:04:59
    difficult to collect people from west of
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    the eurol in the more temperate parts of
  • 00:05:03
    Europe including Russia at that time did
  • 00:05:06
    not exactly want to go into Siberia and
  • 00:05:09
    be mountain men and collect all these
  • 00:05:11
    furs for themselves so Russia found that
  • 00:05:14
    they had to do something very dark to
  • 00:05:17
    take advantage of all this wealth along
  • 00:05:19
    with discovering Furs Russia very
  • 00:05:22
    quickly found out that there were Native
  • 00:05:24
    populations in Siberia which unlike
  • 00:05:27
    Russians and unlike Europeans were very
  • 00:05:30
    used to living in this harsh weather and
  • 00:05:32
    had adapted to do it very well and who
  • 00:05:35
    survived by hunting so what Russia did
  • 00:05:38
    was they quickly began to develop
  • 00:05:40
    strategies to subjugate these people and
  • 00:05:43
    to get them to hunt for them these
  • 00:05:46
    people didn't value anything that Russia
  • 00:05:48
    had to offer except for their own lives
  • 00:05:52
    and so what Russia would do was they
  • 00:05:53
    would do false flag attacks false raids
  • 00:05:56
    on these villages to scare them and then
  • 00:05:59
    they would come in and offer protection
  • 00:06:02
    in exchange for Furs and in this way
  • 00:06:05
    Russia very quickly spread across all of
  • 00:06:08
    Siberia all the way to its eastern coast
  • 00:06:12
    and developed trains of people that
  • 00:06:14
    would basically bring them Furs from the
  • 00:06:17
    Far East to specific forts at specific
  • 00:06:20
    areas that Russia would then collect and
  • 00:06:22
    take back to Moscow not dissimilar to
  • 00:06:25
    how the American West was conquered but
  • 00:06:27
    Russia in particular
  • 00:06:30
    was rather brutal so then when we look
  • 00:06:32
    at siberia's history what we actually
  • 00:06:35
    find is a vast land with a huge number
  • 00:06:39
    of different nations that historically
  • 00:06:42
    have lived there and have given their
  • 00:06:44
    allegiance to Moscow either because they
  • 00:06:47
    were forced to or because they were
  • 00:06:50
    deceived into doing it and this is
  • 00:06:52
    something that has played out through
  • 00:06:54
    all of Russia's history from the time of
  • 00:06:55
    the Russian Empire to the Soviet Union
  • 00:06:58
    moving forward where Russia was always
  • 00:07:01
    trying to do things to prevent the
  • 00:07:04
    Siberian people from unifying and
  • 00:07:07
    revolting against them the independent
  • 00:07:10
    Siberian nations were too small in
  • 00:07:13
    population to ever break free from
  • 00:07:16
    Russia itself there were actually
  • 00:07:18
    several wars fought to try to prevent
  • 00:07:21
    Russian aggression and several tribes
  • 00:07:24
    were actually almost completely wiped
  • 00:07:26
    out and some of the bloodiest Wars that
  • 00:07:28
    actually existed on the Planet at the
  • 00:07:30
    time they were fought now even when you
  • 00:07:32
    look at a modern map of Russia you can
  • 00:07:34
    see how this has played out and it's
  • 00:07:36
    part of why Russia is actually by name
  • 00:07:40
    technically the Russian Federation and
  • 00:07:43
    not just Russia and if you look at a map
  • 00:07:46
    of Russia even today it is a map of
  • 00:07:50
    different nations that theoretically are
  • 00:07:54
    republics that have Independence and
  • 00:07:57
    have their own governance structures
  • 00:08:00
    this in particular was a way to keep
  • 00:08:03
    these regions separated and to prevent
  • 00:08:06
    them from unifying together and that is
  • 00:08:09
    why the republics were made so diverse
  • 00:08:12
    even though their populations were so
  • 00:08:14
    small and it would have been easier to
  • 00:08:16
    govern them by unifying them when you
  • 00:08:19
    look at maps of Soviet railroads in
  • 00:08:22
    particular you can also see this where
  • 00:08:25
    the way that railroads were developed in
  • 00:08:27
    Soviet times was to keep these republics
  • 00:08:30
    separate from each other but as
  • 00:08:32
    connected to Moscow as possible so there
  • 00:08:35
    was basically a hub and spoke model to
  • 00:08:37
    their railroads where you would have
  • 00:08:40
    railroads going from independent
  • 00:08:42
    republics that would connect to Moscow
  • 00:08:44
    but that wouldn't connect to each other
  • 00:08:46
    now some people will say well that's
  • 00:08:48
    just because it was more efficient to do
  • 00:08:49
    things this way but that's not true at
  • 00:08:51
    all the Soviet rail system was built by
  • 00:08:54
    forced labor by gag labor and Stalin was
  • 00:08:58
    known to build railroads that made no
  • 00:09:02
    sense from a practical standpoint to
  • 00:09:04
    places where there were very few people
  • 00:09:07
    as long as those roads connected back to
  • 00:09:10
    Moscow and so we see again a deliberate
  • 00:09:13
    attempt to keep the Siberian people
  • 00:09:15
    separate because Moscow has always
  • 00:09:19
    feared their unification finally even
  • 00:09:22
    today we see modern Russia continuing
  • 00:09:25
    the same Trends since the war in Ukraine
  • 00:09:28
    has begun there have been numerous
  • 00:09:31
    different stories and numerous different
  • 00:09:33
    articles from so many different sources
  • 00:09:36
    pointing out that to fill their military
  • 00:09:39
    ranks Russia has
  • 00:09:41
    disproportionately been conscripting and
  • 00:09:44
    recruiting from Siberian villages with a
  • 00:09:47
    couple of very Stark examples where some
  • 00:09:50
    Siberian very small cities very small
  • 00:09:53
    towns have had a very large percentage
  • 00:09:56
    of their male population essentially
  • 00:09:59
    wiped out and this even resulted in some
  • 00:10:01
    desperate stories that made headlines
  • 00:10:04
    like a couple of Siberian men that
  • 00:10:06
    actually crossed across to Alaska in
  • 00:10:10
    some of the most treacherous waters on
  • 00:10:12
    Earth in a rowboat to escape potentially
  • 00:10:15
    being forced to fight in Ukraine these
  • 00:10:18
    people were basically put in the front
  • 00:10:20
    line as Canon fodder and many of them
  • 00:10:23
    died as soon as they got there and this
  • 00:10:25
    was seen by many as sort of an
  • 00:10:27
    intentional move by Russia to do two
  • 00:10:30
    things first to keep the costs in Moscow
  • 00:10:33
    and St Petersburg low so that your
  • 00:10:35
    average Russian didn't notice the true
  • 00:10:37
    cost of the war but also at the same
  • 00:10:40
    time to remove potential opposition
  • 00:10:43
    potential strength young men from these
  • 00:10:46
    regions and territories that weren't as
  • 00:10:49
    loyal to Moscow as people to the west of
  • 00:10:52
    the urals so there is a very quick road
  • 00:10:55
    across history showing how at different
  • 00:10:57
    points Moscow has tried to keep Siberia
  • 00:11:01
    under its thumb the reason I've laid
  • 00:11:03
    things out like this is to show many
  • 00:11:06
    different potential motivations for
  • 00:11:08
    Siberians to want to break off from
  • 00:11:11
    Russia and there's so many more that I
  • 00:11:13
    could list but is that actually a
  • 00:11:16
    realistic idea well maybe maybe not on
  • 00:11:21
    one hand the reason that this is
  • 00:11:24
    unlikely is because Siberian population
  • 00:11:27
    is so low it is
  • 00:11:29
    difficult for these people to unify and
  • 00:11:31
    even if they did would there be enough
  • 00:11:34
    to actually stand up against Russia and
  • 00:11:37
    would it be worth it for them well maybe
  • 00:11:40
    not and so a lot of people will discard
  • 00:11:42
    this idea and make it seem crazy however
  • 00:11:46
    on the other hand you have to ask what
  • 00:11:49
    the Kremlin themselves actually shows
  • 00:11:52
    through their actions and what the
  • 00:11:54
    Kremlin shows through their actions all
  • 00:11:56
    throughout history is that they do very
  • 00:11:59
    much much fear Siberians unifying and
  • 00:12:01
    breaking apart and in the modern day
  • 00:12:05
    there is a particularly strong reason
  • 00:12:08
    for the Kremlin to fear this and that is
  • 00:12:10
    where the rest of this video is going to
  • 00:12:12
    go which is China Siberia is a very
  • 00:12:19
    resourcer population sparse region that
  • 00:12:23
    sits directly above China which is a
  • 00:12:27
    very resource poort po population rich
  • 00:12:31
    country which in particular lacks a lot
  • 00:12:34
    of the resources that Siberia actually
  • 00:12:37
    has and even more than that large chunks
  • 00:12:41
    of Siberia historically belong to China
  • 00:12:45
    in recent Russian history we have seen
  • 00:12:47
    some very interesting Trends where in
  • 00:12:51
    Russia there has been very strong
  • 00:12:53
    anti-chinese immigration rhetoric now
  • 00:12:57
    the reason that this rhetoric is
  • 00:12:59
    surprising is twofold first Russia has a
  • 00:13:04
    demographic crisis and Russia actually
  • 00:13:08
    needs immigrants in order to keep their
  • 00:13:11
    country afloat in the long term they
  • 00:13:13
    need more population because they do not
  • 00:13:15
    have enough population to support those
  • 00:13:18
    that are growing into old age but as
  • 00:13:21
    that demographic crisis has become worse
  • 00:13:23
    because of the war in Ukraine and as
  • 00:13:26
    Russia has had a labor crisis where they
  • 00:13:30
    don't have nearly enough workers in
  • 00:13:31
    their country where you would expect
  • 00:13:34
    Russia to want as many Chinese
  • 00:13:36
    immigrants as possible lately Russia has
  • 00:13:39
    actually been ramping up the
  • 00:13:41
    anti-chinese immigration rhetoric and it
  • 00:13:44
    shows that Russia fears Chinese
  • 00:13:47
    immigration for a particular reason they
  • 00:13:50
    are afraid and they will say this
  • 00:13:52
    explicitly that Chinese people will come
  • 00:13:55
    into their territories and that they
  • 00:13:57
    will slowly culturally break these
  • 00:14:01
    regions away from Russian influence and
  • 00:14:04
    so Russia is very afraid of China taking
  • 00:14:08
    Siberia from them now you might say well
  • 00:14:11
    aren't Russia and China friends and the
  • 00:14:14
    answer to that is kind of maybe maybe it
  • 00:14:18
    doesn't matter either way you have to
  • 00:14:20
    remember that Russia has a very
  • 00:14:22
    particular history when it comes to
  • 00:14:24
    their allies that makes them approach
  • 00:14:26
    everything with a sense of paranoia
  • 00:14:28
    validly so Russia if you remember in
  • 00:14:31
    World War II helped Nazi Germany invade
  • 00:14:34
    and Conquer Europe and then Nazi Germany
  • 00:14:37
    turned around and invaded Russia in
  • 00:14:40
    return and so Russia is always looking
  • 00:14:43
    at their allies with a sense of paranoia
  • 00:14:45
    and it turns out that when it comes to
  • 00:14:47
    China Russia actually has War Games
  • 00:14:51
    preparing for a Chinese invasion of
  • 00:14:53
    Eastern Siberia and these war games are
  • 00:14:57
    chillingly similar to The Situation that
  • 00:14:59
    Russia finds itself in today the war
  • 00:15:01
    games basically predicate a scenario
  • 00:15:04
    where what would happen if Russia were
  • 00:15:07
    weakened by War or conflict in the west
  • 00:15:09
    where they were forced to divert
  • 00:15:11
    military resources from the East and
  • 00:15:14
    where they were diminished in strength
  • 00:15:16
    and they predicted that under those
  • 00:15:18
    circumstances China might actually
  • 00:15:20
    militarily invade Russia and try to take
  • 00:15:23
    their historical lands from them the
  • 00:15:25
    craziest thing about this is that
  • 00:15:27
    Russia's paranoia has turned out to
  • 00:15:31
    actually be true because within the past
  • 00:15:34
    year China has actually made a move to
  • 00:15:38
    reclaim a portion of their historical
  • 00:15:40
    lands from Russia and it comes down to a
  • 00:15:44
    place that at first seems insignificant
  • 00:15:47
    until you start really looking carefully
  • 00:15:49
    at all the details a place called Bull
  • 00:15:53
    usisi Island or the great useri Island
  • 00:15:58
    which turns out is one of if not the
  • 00:16:01
    most strategic points on Russia's border
  • 00:16:04
    with China bullo usisi Island is an
  • 00:16:08
    island that Russia and China have feuded
  • 00:16:10
    over in the past and that they have
  • 00:16:12
    actually fought Wars over when Russia
  • 00:16:15
    was still the Soviet Union this is an
  • 00:16:18
    island that sits at the Confluence of
  • 00:16:20
    two major navigable rivers that run
  • 00:16:23
    along China's border with Russia and go
  • 00:16:26
    all the way out to the Pacific Ocean
  • 00:16:28
    this this is a very strategic point on
  • 00:16:31
    the map that provides China potentially
  • 00:16:34
    if they were to take it with access to
  • 00:16:37
    the Pacific Ocean that bypasses the
  • 00:16:39
    koreas bypasses Taiwan and bypasses
  • 00:16:43
    Japan we'll get back to that in a moment
  • 00:16:46
    and bullo usisi island is the key to all
  • 00:16:50
    of this bullo yarisi island is what you
  • 00:16:53
    could call a choke point like where I'm
  • 00:16:55
    standing now where I can see everything
  • 00:16:58
    that goes on and all the trails in every
  • 00:17:00
    direction if you control this island you
  • 00:17:03
    control all of these navigable rivers
  • 00:17:05
    and so because of this China and Russia
  • 00:17:07
    have long had an agreement where they
  • 00:17:09
    would split the island and where neither
  • 00:17:12
    of them could develop on it or build on
  • 00:17:14
    it so that there would be no military
  • 00:17:16
    fortifications and no aggression he who
  • 00:17:19
    controls this island potentially
  • 00:17:22
    controls the eastern half of outer
  • 00:17:24
    Manchuria and that is why directly
  • 00:17:26
    across from this island Russia has built
  • 00:17:29
    their largest city in the region
  • 00:17:31
    Cabas but last year China claimed This
  • 00:17:35
    Island from Russia they did it quietly
  • 00:17:39
    they did it in a way that not many
  • 00:17:41
    people noticed but Russia effectively
  • 00:17:44
    conceded it to them what China did is
  • 00:17:46
    what China does all the time they
  • 00:17:48
    released a new map where they claimed
  • 00:17:50
    lands that they wanted as their own that
  • 00:17:53
    were disputed by other nations China has
  • 00:17:56
    done this with things like the South
  • 00:17:57
    China Sea China has done this with the
  • 00:17:59
    Himalayas on their border with India but
  • 00:18:01
    notably every time China does this the
  • 00:18:03
    Nations that they are taking land from
  • 00:18:07
    always militantly object to it but
  • 00:18:10
    Russia did not object to it Russia tried
  • 00:18:13
    to shove it under the rug and to not
  • 00:18:16
    draw attention to it what Russia did is
  • 00:18:18
    they said we're good with China we don't
  • 00:18:20
    have any problems with China but we are
  • 00:18:23
    going to let Chinese companies start
  • 00:18:25
    developing on the island directly across
  • 00:18:29
    from
  • 00:18:29
    Karas and so Russia has basically been
  • 00:18:32
    forced to concede an objective of major
  • 00:18:35
    military strategic importance to
  • 00:18:39
    China because of their war in Ukraine so
  • 00:18:42
    are we just making a mountain out of a
  • 00:18:44
    mole hill here or is there something
  • 00:18:46
    more to this well maybe it's a mountain
  • 00:18:49
    maybe it's a mole hill but the mole hill
  • 00:18:52
    looks a lot more like a mountain when
  • 00:18:54
    you understand the history behind this
  • 00:18:57
    region because it turns out that China
  • 00:19:00
    has historical claims to the regions
  • 00:19:02
    that greater yarisi Island controls
  • 00:19:05
    access to China historically owns outer
  • 00:19:09
    Manchuria which is now Russian territory
  • 00:19:12
    that land was basically forcibly taken
  • 00:19:14
    from China during what China calls the
  • 00:19:17
    century of humiliation under unfair
  • 00:19:20
    treaties where China was basically
  • 00:19:23
    devastated by Foreign Wars by the OPM
  • 00:19:26
    war and forced into a position position
  • 00:19:28
    of weakness where they made concessions
  • 00:19:31
    that they weren't happy about and the
  • 00:19:32
    Chinese
  • 00:19:34
    government has a 100-year plan where
  • 00:19:36
    they are trying to undo the century of
  • 00:19:40
    humiliation this means that they are
  • 00:19:41
    trying to undo the effects of all of
  • 00:19:44
    these unfair treaties and they are
  • 00:19:46
    trying to return China to greatness
  • 00:19:49
    because if you remember China was at one
  • 00:19:51
    point the largest most powerful Empire
  • 00:19:55
    on Earth what's interesting is when you
  • 00:19:57
    think about this
  • 00:19:59
    a lot of people have a lot of anxiety
  • 00:20:01
    about China's plan to reverse their
  • 00:20:03
    Century of humiliation a lot of people
  • 00:20:06
    have anxiety about China attacking
  • 00:20:09
    Taiwan and reclaiming their historical
  • 00:20:12
    lands and they have a lot of anxiety
  • 00:20:14
    about how China's force will be directed
  • 00:20:17
    against the west and against the United
  • 00:20:19
    States but the reality is that China has
  • 00:20:23
    just as much reason if not more reason
  • 00:20:26
    to have beef with Russia because Russia
  • 00:20:29
    holds all these historical Chinese lands
  • 00:20:32
    the United States doesn't hold any now
  • 00:20:35
    when you look at if China were to have a
  • 00:20:37
    military plan to take back outer
  • 00:20:39
    Manchuria from Russia Bull usisi Island
  • 00:20:43
    would be the first step because
  • 00:20:45
    basically if China could navigate along
  • 00:20:46
    the samur river up towards the Pacific
  • 00:20:49
    Ocean they could cut outer manua in half
  • 00:20:52
    they could cut off supply lines to and
  • 00:20:55
    from the Russian Port of vlasto and they
  • 00:20:57
    could basically isolate this region so
  • 00:20:59
    this is the Strategic piece of territory
  • 00:21:01
    that China would use if they were going
  • 00:21:03
    to try this now potentially the final
  • 00:21:06
    piece of this puzzle is Taiwan unless
  • 00:21:09
    you've been living under a rock you have
  • 00:21:12
    probably heard a lot about China's plans
  • 00:21:15
    to invade and recapture Taiwan which is
  • 00:21:19
    part of their historical
  • 00:21:21
    lands this is huge news everybody talks
  • 00:21:25
    about it but few people think about that
  • 00:21:29
    the major problem with China's strategy
  • 00:21:32
    here is that everybody talks about it if
  • 00:21:37
    you know anything about Chinese military
  • 00:21:40
    history and how China approaches World
  • 00:21:45
    conflicts all of their military
  • 00:21:47
    literature goes directly against this
  • 00:21:52
    China of course is responsible for
  • 00:21:54
    Literature Like sunzo The Art of War and
  • 00:21:56
    a lot of other literature from the
  • 00:21:57
    Waring stat period And this is the
  • 00:22:00
    literature that they Ed to still train
  • 00:22:03
    their Military Officers in the modern
  • 00:22:05
    day and a quote from that that I find
  • 00:22:09
    particularly striking is this in the Art
  • 00:22:12
    of War there's a quote that says all
  • 00:22:14
    Warfare is based on
  • 00:22:17
    Deception let your plans be dark and
  • 00:22:21
    impenetrable as
  • 00:22:22
    night then when you
  • 00:22:25
    move fall like a
  • 00:22:27
    thunderbolt now when I think of China's
  • 00:22:29
    plans to attack
  • 00:22:31
    Taiwan there is nothing about those
  • 00:22:34
    plans that is dark and impenetrable as
  • 00:22:37
    night there is nothing about those plans
  • 00:22:41
    that are secretive in fact China has
  • 00:22:43
    gone in public and talked about their
  • 00:22:45
    plans to reunify with Taiwan they've
  • 00:22:48
    been very public about sending Naval
  • 00:22:51
    patrols and air patrols around
  • 00:22:54
    Taiwan and they have used this as their
  • 00:22:57
    reason for
  • 00:23:01
    remilitarization there is a possibility
  • 00:23:03
    here though that China's real Target is
  • 00:23:06
    not Taiwan at all but that their real
  • 00:23:10
    Target is reclaiming outer Manchuria or
  • 00:23:14
    other historical lands from Russia and
  • 00:23:17
    that Taiwan is actually a
  • 00:23:19
    cover so that nobody asks questions as
  • 00:23:23
    China does massive remilitarization now
  • 00:23:27
    I don't hear anybody talking about this
  • 00:23:30
    and I really don't know why because when
  • 00:23:32
    you think of world history no country
  • 00:23:36
    that has ever embarked on war or a
  • 00:23:38
    military campaign at the scale and the
  • 00:23:41
    size of what Taiwan would be has gone
  • 00:23:44
    around and talked about it in public all
  • 00:23:46
    the time when we think of D-Day for
  • 00:23:48
    example a huge amphibious Invasion there
  • 00:23:52
    was so much deception wrapped around
  • 00:23:54
    that because the campaign really
  • 00:23:56
    literally hinged on Deception
  • 00:23:59
    amphibious assaults are so difficult
  • 00:24:01
    they cost so many lives and so to
  • 00:24:03
    prepare for D-Day the Allies did crazy
  • 00:24:06
    things they did false codes that the
  • 00:24:08
    Germans believed they planted
  • 00:24:10
    information on bodies that floated up on
  • 00:24:13
    the perfect Beach for Nazi Germany to
  • 00:24:15
    intercept those plans and think that
  • 00:24:17
    they knew where the Allies were going to
  • 00:24:18
    attack the allies of course built entire
  • 00:24:21
    fake armies out of dummies and
  • 00:24:23
    parachutes to deceive the Nazis and make
  • 00:24:26
    them think that they were going to
  • 00:24:27
    attack somewhere that they weren't now
  • 00:24:30
    the further that you read into Chinese
  • 00:24:31
    military literature the more clear this
  • 00:24:33
    starts to become there are so many
  • 00:24:37
    suggestions in Chinese military
  • 00:24:39
    literature about the tactics that the
  • 00:24:41
    nation should take for example there is
  • 00:24:45
    literature that talks about hiding a
  • 00:24:47
    dagger behind a smile in other words
  • 00:24:50
    making people think that you're their
  • 00:24:52
    friends and then backstabbing them there
  • 00:24:55
    is Chinese literature that talks about
  • 00:24:57
    watch a fire from across the river in
  • 00:25:00
    other words cause chaos in another
  • 00:25:03
    country or allow chaos to happen in
  • 00:25:05
    another
  • 00:25:06
    country and then go in and pick up the
  • 00:25:09
    pieces there is Chinese literature that
  • 00:25:11
    talks about even more explicitly says
  • 00:25:13
    loot a burning house and so when you
  • 00:25:16
    look at what China is actually doing
  • 00:25:17
    with Russia right now a lot of these
  • 00:25:20
    tactics are potentially on display China
  • 00:25:24
    has of course supported Russia's war in
  • 00:25:26
    Ukraine but not really not that much
  • 00:25:28
    they've given them just enough support
  • 00:25:30
    for Russia to probably believe that
  • 00:25:33
    China is on their side but China has
  • 00:25:36
    also been unwilling to support Russia in
  • 00:25:38
    a lot of ways China has been unwilling
  • 00:25:41
    to allow Russia to build a gas pipeline
  • 00:25:45
    that would go down to Chinese territory
  • 00:25:46
    even though Russia desperately needs
  • 00:25:48
    that Revenue China has bought some oil
  • 00:25:51
    from Russia but they've done it at steep
  • 00:25:53
    discounts they have been just close
  • 00:25:55
    enough to Russia's corner of the world
  • 00:25:57
    to be Russia's only friend potentially
  • 00:26:00
    getting Russia to maybe give them some
  • 00:26:02
    Secrets maybe give them some information
  • 00:26:04
    maybe cozy up to them but it's very
  • 00:26:07
    possible that China could be planning an
  • 00:26:09
    operation Barbarosa style Invasion to
  • 00:26:11
    betray Russia and take back their lands
  • 00:26:14
    of course from a practical standpoint
  • 00:26:16
    this would make more sense for China
  • 00:26:18
    than invading Taiwan would invading
  • 00:26:21
    Taiwan would turn pretty much the entire
  • 00:26:23
    world against China and China would
  • 00:26:25
    almost certainly face massive military
  • 00:26:28
    opposition to the point that the
  • 00:26:30
    objective would be impossible and even
  • 00:26:33
    if they captured Taiwan the most
  • 00:26:34
    valuable thing there the semiconductor
  • 00:26:37
    Fabs would be destroyed and they would
  • 00:26:39
    be of no value to China on the other
  • 00:26:41
    hand if China goes into outer menuria
  • 00:26:45
    they get all the same potential benefits
  • 00:26:47
    that Taiwan would offer them but
  • 00:26:50
    nobody's really going to be upset if
  • 00:26:52
    China invades Russia after Russia just
  • 00:26:54
    invaded Ukraine especially if China uses
  • 00:26:57
    the same reason that Russia used to
  • 00:26:59
    invade Ukraine which is what they would
  • 00:27:01
    be doing outer manua accomplishes the
  • 00:27:04
    same major objectives for China because
  • 00:27:06
    the main reason China would want Taiwan
  • 00:27:09
    would be to secure access to the Pacific
  • 00:27:11
    Ocean against potential anti-
  • 00:27:14
    missiles on all the chain of islands
  • 00:27:16
    that would basically surround China but
  • 00:27:18
    going up the Amore River and into the
  • 00:27:20
    Pacific Ocean allows China to accomplish
  • 00:27:23
    the same objective with much less
  • 00:27:27
    resistance and they would get a lot more
  • 00:27:30
    value out of it because they would get a
  • 00:27:31
    lot of contiguous land in Siberia that
  • 00:27:34
    has a lot of things that they need we
  • 00:27:36
    started this video by asking the
  • 00:27:38
    question could Russia ever lose Siberia
  • 00:27:42
    or portions of Siberia and we've
  • 00:27:45
    addressed two major reasons that this
  • 00:27:46
    could happen first the Siberian people
  • 00:27:49
    themselves could revolt against Russia
  • 00:27:50
    and they have a long history of wanting
  • 00:27:53
    and trying to do so and second China
  • 00:27:55
    could invade Siberia and a third is that
  • 00:27:58
    there could actually be a combination of
  • 00:27:59
    both China could invade Siberia while
  • 00:28:03
    also supporting internal secession
  • 00:28:05
    movements to keep Russia busy so Russia
  • 00:28:08
    has really put themselves in a massive
  • 00:28:11
    quandry by invading Ukraine and failing
  • 00:28:15
    and what we see play out over the next
  • 00:28:17
    several decades is going to be very
  • 00:28:20
    interesting now if you appreciated this
  • 00:28:22
    video if you thought I explored angles
  • 00:28:24
    that you don't hear anywhere else that's
  • 00:28:26
    because that's largely true I look in a
  • 00:28:30
    lot of Corners that a lot of people are
  • 00:28:32
    afraid to look and that allows me to
  • 00:28:34
    make
  • 00:28:35
    connections that few other people make
  • 00:28:38
    if you appreciate having these unique
  • 00:28:39
    perspectives can I ask you for a quick
  • 00:28:41
    favor would you consider becoming a
  • 00:28:44
    patron of this channel it's completely
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    voluntary I'm not putting anything
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    behind a pay wall it's just a way for
  • 00:28:49
    those who like these videos and
  • 00:28:51
    appreciate these videos to support this
  • 00:28:54
    with that in mind I'm going to talk a
  • 00:28:55
    lot about this topic in the future so be
  • 00:28:57
    sure to subscribe and I'll see you on
  • 00:28:59
    the next one
Tags
  • Siberia
  • Russia
  • China
  • Territorial Claims
  • Geopolitics
  • Bulo Usisi Island
  • Recruitment
  • Historical Territories
  • Siberia Secession
  • Ukraine War