Why it matters: The U.S. has responded to standoffs with North Korea, Russia, Iran and Venezuela in unorthodox and unpredictable ways. Alliances are rupturing, authoritarians are rising, and China is steadily becoming the most powerful rival America has ever faced.
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Commuters line up to cross to the United States at the San Ysidro crossing port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico. Photo: Guillermo Arias/AFP/Getty Images
Mexican leaders are calling for stronger enforcement on its northern border as the number of coronavirus cases in the southwestern U.S. continues to rise, The Washington Post reports.
Why it matters: Mexico worries the growing number of COIVD-19 cases in the U.S. could threaten their communities' own safety and ability to combat the pandemic. Hundreds of thousands of people living in the U.S. have continued to cross into Mexico during the pandemic, the Post notes.
On board the USS Ronald Reagan in October 16, 2019. Photo: Catherine Lai/AFP/Getty Images
Two U.S. aircraft carriers—the USS Ronald Reagan and the USS Nimitz—are heading toward the South China Sea to conduct military exercises just as China is conducting drills in the area as well, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The big picture: China claims sovereignty over most of the sea, which other Southeast Asian countries reject, per the Journal. Tensions between the U.S. and China also remain high over trade, the coronavirus pandemic and China's recent effort to exert more control over Hong Kong.