Nickname of country Russia regularly opposes! (5,3)
I believe the answer is:
uncle sam
'nickname' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I can't understand how one could define the other.
I don't understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for uncle sam that I've seen before include "national representative, initially appropriate" , "Iconic male relative for America" , "Iconic American male relative" , "'Relative in the US Government (5,3)'" , "Statesman" .)