China, Russia, Iran and North Korea form 'axis of aggressors' that could overwhelm US, book warns

China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are acting arsenic a strategically aligned bloc adjacent without a ceremonial mutual-defense treaty, according to a caller Foundation for Defense of Democracies publication informing that their practice could permission the United States confronting aggregate crises simultaneously.

The book, "Axis of Aggressors: Countering the Cooperation of China, Russia, Iran and North Korea," examines however the 4 authoritarian governments enactment 1 different crossed military, economic, cyber and exertion domains.

Its authors admit that the grouping is not a NATO-style alliance. It has nary unified command, broad defence committedness oregon implicit spot among its members. But they reason that its applicable effects are already disposable successful progressive conflicts.

TRUMP TO CONFRONT XI AT HIGH-STAKES SUMMIT OVER CHINA BACKING FOR IRAN, RUSSIA

In this excavation photograph distributed by the Russian authorities bureau Sputnik, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, China’s President Xi Jinping and North Korea’s person Kim Jong Un locomotion earlier a subject parade marking the 80th day of triumph implicit Japan and the extremity of World War II successful Beijing’s Tiananmen Square connected Sept. 3, 2025. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is seen astatine near successful the background. (Sergey Bobylev / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

"I conscionable got backmost from a mates of weeks successful Ukraine, and erstwhile I’m sitting successful Ukraine, it’s truly evident to maine that Ukraine is warring Russia, North Korea, Iran and China," retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery, 1 of the book’s 3 authors, told Fox News Digital.

Montgomery pointed to North Korean ammunition and troops, Iranian drones and accumulation expertise, and Chinese economical and technological enactment for Moscow.

"China is backstopping the full thing, providing the economical backstop to Russia’s system truthful they tin past this four-year catastrophic lawsuit for Russia," Montgomery said. "They’re providing microelectronics that we spot successful ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles."

The book’s researchers documented 616 instances of information practice among the 4 governments from Jan. 1, 2019, done Dec. 31, 2025, including arms transfers, weapons development, subject exercises, quality sharing and subject exchanges.

A ‘simultaneity problem’ for the U.S.

The cardinal danger, Montgomery said, is what the publication calls the "simultaneity problem."

"We don’t get to grip these with a singularity anymore. We person to grip this with a simultaneity," helium said. "And I don’t deliberation we tin grip 2 problems astatine once, overmuch little 3 oregon four."

During a imaginable confrontation betwixt China and Taiwan, Montgomery said, North Korea could endanger South Korea oregon behaviour constricted attacks intended to pin down U.S. forces. A struggle involving Russia and NATO’s Baltic members could beryllium accompanied by Iranian coercion oregon different hostile activity.

THREE KEY REASONS WHY AMERICA CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE TAIWAN TO COMMUNIST CHINA

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, greets Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi anterior to their talks astatine the Kremlin successful Moscow, Russia, Monday, June 23, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

The publication identifies China-Russia subject practice arsenic the axis’s astir consequential bilateral relationship. Chinese dual-use products person helped prolong Russia’s defence concern base, portion Moscow is transferring exertion and battlefield lessons that could assistance China successful a Pacific conflict.

North Korea has supplied Russia with millions of artillery rounds, ballistic missiles and troops, portion Moscow has assisted Pyongyang’s missile, space, drone and atomic programs, according to the book.

Iran has provided Russia with drones and accumulation knowledge. The publication warns that Russian and Chinese assistance could besides assistance Tehran rebuild subject capabilities damaged during its conflicts with Israel and the United States.

"The longer they tin entangle the United States, whether it was successful Ukraine oregon successful Iran, China and Russia are the superior beneficiaries," Montgomery said.

Officers and soldiers connected the Chinese People's Liberation Army PLA Navy's guided-missile destroyer Nanning question arsenic the vessel enters the waters of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region successful southbound China, July 2, 2026. (Ji Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images)

China bankrolls the axis

Economic ties underpin the subject cooperation, according to co-author Elaine Dezenski, who described the four-country system arsenic a "fractured alignment."

"These 4 players are bound unneurotic much by necessity than they are by a circumstantial spot oregon shared strategy among them," Dezenski told Fox News Digital. "China needs energy. Russia and Iran request buyers for their lipid and gas. And North Korea needs immoderate lifeline that it tin get."

China purchases discounted Russian and Iranian vigor portion providing goods, exertion and entree to its home market.

The relationships stay unequal. Russia and Iran vie to merchantability akin products, portion China tin question different suppliers. But Dezenski said those divisions should not obscure the benefits the practice provides.

"The economics of this precise overmuch underpin the foundations for the subject engagement that we see," she said.

The publication says China purchases arsenic overmuch arsenic 95% of Iran’s lipid exports. Some sanctioned lipid is routed done 3rd countries, relabeled oregon processed by autarkic Chinese refineries known arsenic "teapots."

"The export juggernaut that is China contiguous is fueled by sanctioned lipid and gas," Dezenski said.

TRUMP MAY CLAIM HE WON THE FIGHT WITH IRAN, BUT THERE’S A BIGGER WAR ALREADY UNDERWAY

FILE - In this Aug. 13, 2007, record photo, a convoy of Chinese APCs rotation by during a rehearsal for a monolithic associated subject workout by the 2 erstwhile Cold War rivals, the archetypal connected Russia's territory successful the Chelyabinsk portion successful Russia's Ural Mountains. Chinese and Russian subject forces are engaged successful associated exercises done Friday, Aug. 13, 2021, successful northwestern China arsenic ties turn betwixt the 2 autocratic states amid uncertainty implicit instability successful Afghanistan. (AP Photo, File)

New outgo networks situation U.S. leverage

Dezenski besides warned that China, Russia and Iran are processing outgo systems extracurricular accepted Western banking infrastructure. More commercialized is being settled successful yuan done China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System, oregon CIPS, perchance reducing Washington’s quality to enforce sanctions done the dollar system.

"We request to truly deliberation astir that sooner alternatively than later, earlier this alternate outgo strategy becomes excessively large to tackle," Dezenski said.

Cyber ties blur the state-criminal line

Montgomery said the enactment betwixt transgression hackers and authorities operatives is often deliberately blurred successful each 4 countries.

"These regimes routinely outsource enactment to transgression groups to support their ain hands clean, and those groups are progressively networking with each other," helium said.

The publication cites ties involving Iranian cybercriminals and Russian ransomware groups, Chinese actors connected Russian dark-web forums, and Russian and North Korean state-backed hackers utilizing shared operational infrastructure.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and North Korea's person Kim Jong Un, right, analyse a motorboat pad of Soyuz rockets during their gathering astatine the Vostochny cosmodrome extracurricular the metropolis of Tsiolkovsky, astir 125 miles from the metropolis of Blagoveshchensk successful the acold eastbound Amur portion of Russia, connected Sept. 13, 2023. North Korean person Kim hailed the country's narration with Russia connected June 12, 2024, arsenic reports suggest that Russian President Putin volition soon sojourn the isolated state for his 3rd gathering with Kim. (Mikhail Metzel, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

Outside experts spot an integrated threat

Carrie Filipetti, enforcement manager of the Vandenberg Coalition and a erstwhile State Department authoritative during the archetypal Trump administration, said drone warfare demonstrates however assistance moves among the countries.

"Chinese components are utilized to make Iranian drones, which are past deployed by the Russians against Ukrainian civilians," Filipetti told Fox News Digital.

She said the narration has besides endangered American troops, pointing to the January 2024 Tower 22 onslaught successful Jordan, which killed 3 U.S. Army Reserve soldiers and wounded much than 40 work members.

"The subject and ideological narration betwixt Russia and Iran is not conscionable a theoretical menace to the United States — American work members person been killed arsenic a effect of it," Filipetti said.

Filipetti said the onslaught utilized an Iranian drone and Russian tactics developed during the warfare successful Ukraine. "These adversaries don’t hold connected everything, but they bash connected 1 thing: to reorient the satellite distant from America and the West," she said. "Our work members and citizens volition proceed to endure until we dainty the menace arsenic the agreed menace it is."

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Richard Newton said the information stems not lone from subject modernization successful each country, but from the grade to which the 4 governments are progressively coordinating.

"I couldn’t hold much with the underlying findings the authors contiguous regarding the accelerated subject modernization unfolding crossed aggregate domains — air, sea, land, abstraction and cyber — emanating from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea," Newton told Fox News Digital.

A billboard depicting Iran's ultimate leaders since 1979: (L to R) Ayatollahs Ruhollah Khomeini (until 1989), Ali Khamenei (until 2026), and Mojtaba Khamenei (incumbent) is displayed supra a road successful Tehran connected March 10, 2026. Iran marked the assignment of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei to regenerate his begetter arsenic its ultimate person connected March 9, 2026.  (AFP/Via Getty Images)

"These nation-states correspond bonzer adversarial challenges for the United States. That’s concerning enough," helium said. "But a large situation President Trump is facing successful his 2nd medication is the level and grade of integration, synchronization and coordination among these 4 adversaries, who are much unified contiguous than ever successful their corporate pursuits to endanger U.S. nationalist information interests."

Newton said the changing quality of warfare, demonstrated by much than 4 years of warring betwixt Russia and Ukraine and the existent U.S.-Iran conflict, has compounded the threat.

"Couple that with the changing quality of warfare we’ve been witnessing," helium said, "and the task to support our federation is present overmuch much analyzable and daunting."

Retired Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, who served arsenic NATO ultimate allied commandant and commandant of U.S. European Command from 2013 to 2016, argued that Washington’s connection understates the severity of the confrontation.

"We often accidental that we are successful ‘strategic competition’ with China and Russia. They are astatine warfare with us," Breedlove told Fox News Digital.

Breedlove said China, Russia, Iran and North Korea "are not partners looking for practice with the U.S.," but governments seeking to "diminish and defeat" American power.

"The force gets a vote," Breedlove said. "Our enemies are voting by their enactment to Russia and Iran."

He added that assistance from the different countries has go progressively important to Moscow arsenic it struggles to prolong its war.

"Aid is captious to Russia," Breedlove said. "Russia is failing and becoming ever much babelike connected its allies."

The authors urge stronger coordination with allies, expanded defence production, greater extortion of U.S. captious infrastructure and much assertive sanctions enforcement.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

The warfare successful Iran has pushed China and Russia person together. FILE: Xi Jinping, left, Vladimir Putin, right (Sergei Guneev/Reuters)

Dezenski called for targeting the afloat web supporting sanctioned Russian and Iranian oil, including refineries, ports, insurers and financiers, alternatively than focusing chiefly connected idiosyncratic vessels.

"We request to dainty this axis arsenic a threat, arsenic a combined threat," Montgomery said, "that volition face america successful each 1 of our situation areas."