> I think the main reason why the US doesn't perceive Mongolia or Kazakhstan as being a strategic threat, is their small population It has nothing to do with t

> I think the main reason why the US doesn't perceive Mongolia or Kazakhstan as being a strategic threat, is their small population It has nothing to do with the population itself. Back in the 80s, when China had >1 billion population at the time, US didn't consider China as a strategic threat, it even offered to sell China all kinds of techs & military hardware. It all happened when China was far less open to the world and far more focused on its communist ideology stuff.