The 2026 APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting will take place in Shenzhen on November 18–19. The gathering may also provide an opportunity for direct talks among the leaders of China, the United States, and Russia. The international context and the balance of power among the three states have changed substantially since the Cold War. How well does the traditional strategic-triangle framework explain their relations today? In this episode of Sinopinion, Da Wei, Director of the Center for International Security and Strategy (CISS) at Tsinghua University, and Shao Yuqun, Director of the Institute for Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (SIIS), are joined by Zhao Long, Deputy Director of the Institute for International Strategic and Security Studies and Senior Research Fellow at SIIS. Using the strategic triangle as a reference point, they reassess today's China-U.S.-Russia relations and their implications for the international order. They explore the scope for cooperation despite persistent differences, and whether mutual vulnerability can contribute to strategic stability.