Connect with us

World

China support for Russia in Ukraine compels Nato ties in Asia: top official

Published

on

China support for Russia in Ukraine compels Nato ties in Asia: top official

Stoltenberg offered his remarks during a visit to Washington and previewed a stance Nato leaders are expected to take at their summit in the American capital from July 9 to 11.

“Publicly, President Xi [Jinping] has tried to create the impression that he’s taking a back seat in this conflict to avoid sanctions and keep trade flowing,” said Stoltenberg of the Chinese leader in remarks at the Wilson Centre, a think tank.

“But the reality is that China’s fuelling the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II. And at the same time, it wants to maintain good relations with the West.”

Chinese exports of dual-use semiconductors and satellite capabilities were enabling Russia to “inflict more death and destruction on Ukraine, bolster its defence industrial base and evade the impact of sanctions and export controls”, Stoltenberg added.

By working together, allies in Europe and Asia “can uphold the international rules-based order and protect our shared values”.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Nato has enhanced its cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries.

US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell has said he briefed Nato about China’s support for Russia. Photo: AP
In June that year, the leaders of Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea took part in the Nato summit in Madrid, Spain, amid heightened alarm over Beijing’s rising economic and military might in the strategically vital region and beyond.
Stoltenberg’s remarks on Monday followed a visit to Nato headquarters in Brussels last month by US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell.

The veteran US diplomat said he briefed his European counterparts on Chinese support for Russia, going into “as much detail and specifics as possible”.

Last week at the Stimson Center, another Washington think tank, Campbell said China and North Korea were the two countries that had “done the most” to help Russia’s “retooling and reconstitution” since it invaded Ukraine.

Noting the significance of the IP4 countries joining the Nato summit in July, Campbell said their presence would allow European leaders to hear the perspectives of Indo-Pacific partners on how the region is “more linked to Europe than ever before”.

In a sign of deepening ties with nuclear-armed North Korea since the start of the Ukraine war, Russian President Vladimir Putin is due this week to travel to Pyongyang. The trip would mark his first visit to the country in 24 years.

On Monday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the US was “concerned” about Russia and North Korea getting closer because of the impact that could have on Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific region at large.

“We know North Korean ballistic missiles are still being used to hit Ukrainian targets, but because there could be some reciprocity here that could affect security on the Korean peninsula,” Kirby added.

The development coincided with mounting tensions in the South China Sea after a Philippine supply ship and a Chinese vessel collided near the disputed Second Thomas Shoal early on Monday.
The Chinese coastguard accused the ship of “unprofessional” and “dangerous” behaviour. The Philippines, an Indo-Pacific defence treaty ally of Washington’s, rejected the charge.

Kirby condemned what he described as “provocative, reckless, unnecessary” actions by China that “could lead to something much bigger and much more violent”.

As for Ukraine, Stoltenberg on Monday asserted the war had shown that European security was not regional but global, “not least because of the support we know Russia was getting from China and others”.

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A makeshift memorial for fallen Ukrainian soldiers at Independence Square in Kyiv on Saturday. Photo: AFP
Later on Monday, the Nato chief was scheduled to meet US President Joe Biden at the White House and announce new defence-spending figures.

“I can only now reveal that this year more than 20 allies will spend at least 2 per cent of GDP on defence,” Stoltenberg said. At present, Nato has 32 member states.

“This is good for Europe and good for America, especially since much of this extra money is spent here in the United States,” he added, noting more than US $140 billion of Europe’s defence acquisitions in the last two years came from American companies.

Donald Trump, the former US president and presumptive Republican nominee for the coming American election in November, has often criticised Europeans for inadequate defence spending. He has argued they rely excessively on the US for security.

Stoltenberg said it would be “stupid” for North America and Europe to stand “divided” in a world “where we are afraid of not only Russia but also the security consequences of China for our security”.

On Tuesday, the Nato chief is scheduled to hold talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the State Department.

Stoltenberg is also set to visit Capitol Hill to meet members of the US Senate Foreign Relations committee, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell and members of the Senate Nato observer group.

Continue Reading