# America's enemies learn to fight as one > Russia, China, Iran and North Korea are turning battlefield lessons into a networked alliance that threatens U.S. power across multiple regions. - Title: America's enemies learn to fight as one · Foreign Affairs - Summary: Russia, China, Iran and North Korea are turning battlefield lessons into a networked alliance that threatens U.S. power across multiple regions. The axis of… - Keywords: russia, china, iran, north korea, axis of upheaval, ukraine war, middle east, u.s. foreign policy, military cooperation, sanctions, world, politics - Source: Foreign Affairs — https://foreignaffairs.com/iran/axis-upheaval-goes-war - Author: Andrea Kendall-Taylor - Published: 2026-10-16T08:00:00+00:00 - Read time: 4 min - Topics: russia, china, iran, north korea, axis of upheaval, ukraine war, middle east, u.s. foreign policy, military cooperation, sanctions, world, politics ## Iranian missile kills American soldiers On July seventeen, an Iranian missile struck Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, killing three American soldiers and wounding four others. The strike was unusually precise. ## China provided targeting intelligence Before the attack, Tehran received high-resolution satellite images of the base from Chinese entities. After the strike, Iran obtained more imagery, potentially helping it assess damage and plan future attacks. ## Russia supplied satellite intelligence Two days before the March twenty-seventh attack on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia that wounded twelve American personnel, fourteen Russian spy satellites passed overhead. ## Russia upgraded Iranian drone technology Moscow provided Iran with weapons and military expertise, including upgraded versions of Iranian drones refined on the battlefield in Ukraine.Russian engineers are helping Iran develop supersonic cruise missiles that could evade U.S.and Israeli air defenses. ## Axis members avoid direct war Russia and China have not directly entered Iran's war with the United States. By providing intelligence, military technology, economic and diplomatic support, they give Iran what it needs without joining its war. ## U.S. allies reluctant to help The United States entered the conflict with a vast network of formal allies, military bases and intelligence-sharing arrangements spanning Europe, the Middle East and Asia. ## Axis cooperation is evolving The axis countries are fine-tuning their cooperation to make their network work in new theaters. They are making their partners more resilient and more dangerous to the United States while limiting costs and risks. ## Trump administration strains alliances The Trump administration has challenged international institutions, strained traditional alliances and adopted a more transactional approach to foreign policy. It has upended trade agreements and threatened the sovereignty of allies such as Canada and Denmark. ## Rapprochement with Russia fails Early in the Trump administration, U.S.officials expressed hope that normalizing relations with Moscow might peel Russia away from the axis.Yet President Donald Trump's bonhomie toward the Kremlin has opened no gaps with the other three. ## Axis united against U.S. power The axis countries object to an international order they see as enshrining Western dominance. More pointedly, they oppose the United States' extraordinary power to constrain, isolate and punish them, and potentially to threaten their regimes. ## Recent U.S. actions deepen fears The United States' capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei reinforce long-standing fears in Beijing, Moscow, Pyongyang and Tehran about U.S. intervention and regime security. ## Drone technology circulates through axis Iran initially sold Russia its Shahed drones and helped Moscow establish production at home. Russia incorporated Chinese components and modified the drones' navigation, communications and payloads. Improvements circulate back through the axis network. ## North Korea and China gain expertise Russia struck a deal to help North Korea expand production of its Shahed-type drones.North Korean engineers learned from time spent in Russia's Yelabuga drone factory.Chinese military personnel received training in drone warfare from Russian forces. ## Model proves it can travel The Ukraine war provided proof of concept for what axis partnerships can accomplish beyond what any country might attain alone. ## Conflict creates opportunities elsewhere Supporting a fellow axis member does not merely strengthen the recipient.Conflict in one theater creates opportunities for partners elsewhere.Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz sent oil prices soaring, delivering a windfall to Russia. ## U.S. military stretched thin Before attacking Iran, the United States redeployed key military assets from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East.As fighting continued, U.S.forces put two aircraft carriers in the region, leaving none in the Indo-Pacific.China gains operational freedom. ## Trump undermines allied relationships The U.S.ambassador to China said Trump offered to sell Beijing weapons while stalling arms sales to Taiwan.Trump expressed greater affection for North Korea's Kim Jong Un than for South Korea's Lee Jae-myung. ## U.S. must strengthen its network The United States should reverse policies that undercut its own network.Washington should help its partners grow stronger by strengthening supply chains through trusted partners, sharing technology and encouraging allies to take on greater security burdens. ## Long struggle ahead requires will Even if the United States changes course, American and allied policymakers should prepare for a long struggle.There are no shortcuts to besting the axis countries.The United States and its allies have the capacity to prevail. > They should demonstrate the will. ## Key takeaway The axis of Russia, China, Iran and North Korea is evolving from bilateral support for Moscow's Ukraine war into a coordinated network that helps members resist U.S. pressure across multiple theaters, while the Trump administration risks weakening American alliances.