In history and the present day, the US and Russia are fierce rivals. Yet, under the Tsars, the US counted Russia an ally, and again against the Nazi menace, the Americans and Russians fought together. Your challenge is to create a stable and long-term Russian-American alliance, along the kind of terms as OTL's Special Relationship with the UK or American alliance with France.
I've commented on the irony of their enduring antagonism before:
https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...-deadliest-enemy-to-whom.295859/#post-8363224
This list of great powers excludes newer powers and neighbors (like India), and focuses on these 8 nations-
US
UK
France
Italy
Germany
Russia
China
Japan
Looking at US history of conflict first
US-UK (ARW, 1812)
US-France (Quasi-War)
US-Italy (WWII, 1941-1943)
US-Germany (WWII, 1941-1945, WWI, 1917-1918)
US-Russia (Siberian Intervention in RCW, 1918-19, air- to air defense encounters in Korea & Vietnam)
US-China (Korean War, Boxer Expedition)
US-Japan (WWII,, 1941-1945)
In the order of US casualties lost at the hands of an opponent, from most deadly to least deadly, I think US opponents rank like this:
1) Germany
2) Japan
3) UK
4) Italy
5) China
6) France
7) Russia
Then looking at Russian history of conflict
Russia (&USSR) - US (Siberian Intervention in RCW, 1918-19, air- to air defense encounters in Korea & Vietnam)
Russia-UK (Crimean War, RCW)
Russia-France (Napoleonic wars, Crimean War, RCW, Vichy volunteers for Axis in WWII)
Russia-Italy (Crimean War, Spanish Civil War, WWII)
Russia-Germany (WWII, Spanish Civil War, WWI, German auxiliaries to Napoleon)
Russia-China (Border clashes of 1969, Xinjiang intervention 1934, border war of 1929, Boxer Expedition, Ili Crisis)
Russia-Japan (WWII, 1945,Nomonhan, 1939, RCW 1918-22, Russo-Japanese War, 1904-1905)
In order of Russian (or Soviet) casualties lost at the hands of an opponent, from most deadly to least deadly, I think Russia’s opponents rank like this:
1) Germany
2) France
3) Italy
4) UK
5) Japan
6) China
7) US
This spurs the ironic observation that current-day relations between the US and Russia are worse than their respective relations with 6 other countries that killed more of their people. This is particularly remarkable on the US side, which is currently in alliance with its 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th place deadliest historic foes.
Looking at this from a Chinese perspective, it’s current foreign policy tensions with the other listed great powers actually tracks fairly closely with their historic ranking of deadliness
1) Japan (2nd Sino-Japanese War 1931-1945, Shandong occupation 1928-1929, 1st (modern) sino-Japanese war 1894-95, Imjin War, 1590s, Wako pirate raids, earlier)
2) US (Korean War)
3) UK (Boxer Expedition, Arrow War & Opium War)
4) France (Indochina War, 1949-1954, Boxer Expedition, Sino-French War, 1884-1885, Arrow War)
5) Russia (Border clashes of 1969, Xinjiang intervention 1934, border war of 1929, Boxer Expedition, Ili Crisis)
6) Germany (Boxer expedition)
7) Italy – nothing.
Contemporary China’s relations are indeed worse with its historic deadliest foes among the great power list, Japan and the US, than with the other 5 powers in the batch. Interestingly, despite sharing a large land border, contending for influence over border regions, territorial transfers and ideological rivalries, the Russians and Chinese do not have a history of slaughtering each other frequently and in great numbers as one finds between neighboring peoples in Europe and the Middle East.