New Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion, and America’s Struggle to Defend the West

New Cold Wars by David E. Sanger, a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, is a gripping and deeply reported account of how the United States has entered a new era of geopolitical rivalry with China and Russia—the world’s other two great nuclear powers.

Sanger traces how, after the end of the Cold War, America believed that a democratic Russia and a prosperous China could be integrated into a Western-led world order built on capitalism and peace. But by the time the U.S. emerged from the “war on terror,” that vision had collapsed. Both Vladimir Putin’s Russia and Xi Jinping’s China had become increasingly authoritarian and assertive, pursuing global influence in direct opposition to Washington’s interests.

The book reveals how the three powers are now locked in a high-stakes competition for military, technological, economic, and political dominance, forcing nations worldwide to choose sides amid growing instability. Drawing on extensive interviews with U.S. officials, intelligence officers, foreign leaders, and tech executives across five presidential administrations, Sanger weaves together vivid scenes from:

• The battlefields of Ukraine, where Russia relies on North Korean ammunition and Iranian drones;

• Taiwan, the center of the world’s semiconductor supply chain and a potential flashpoint for conflict;

• The White House Situation Room, where policymakers grapple with how to deter adversaries while managing domestic political divisions.

Through these interconnected stories, New Cold Wars examines crucial questions:
Will Putin’s war in Ukraine destroy him—or outlast Western resolve?
Will Xi move to seize Taiwan?
Can Russia and China deepen their alliance against the U.S.?
And can a politically fractured America still lead the free world?

Combining on-the-ground reporting with sharp geopolitical analysis, Sanger delivers a compelling narrative of America’s return to superpower confrontation—and what the outcomes of these new cold wars will mean for the future of global stability.