NATO denounces China as ‘decisive promoter’ of Russia’s war in Ukraine | Real Time Headlines

In NATO’s strongest rebuke of China yet, the military alliance called Beijing a “decisive enabler” in Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and expressed concern about its nuclear arsenal and “systemic challenges” to NATO security.

“Through its so-called ‘unrestricted’ partnership and massive support for Russia’s defense industrial base, the People’s Republic of China has become a decisive driver of Russia’s war in Ukraine,” NATO issued a communiqué on Wednesday sayinga day after a Washington summit celebrating the alliance’s 75th anniversary^th anniversary.

The alliance further called on Beijing to “cease all material and political support for Russia’s war effort,” specifically citing the transfer of “dual-use materials, such as weapons parts, equipment and raw materials as inputs to the Russian defense sector.” For the first time, NATO has explicitly accused Xi Jinping’s government of providing military aid to Moscow.

“This is the first time that a NATO Ally has stated this so clearly in an agreed document,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a speech on Wednesday. “This cannot continue, otherwise it will It will affect China’s interests and reputation.”

NATO has staunchly supported non-member Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, with Moscow widely viewed as a potential threat to wider European security.

Beijing has repeatedly denied providing arms to Russia in the Ukraine war, but the two countries have maintained close trade ties throughout the conflict, even as Moscow has found itself increasingly isolated from the West or under outright sanctions from the West. A CNBC analysis last year found that Moscow was buying semiconductors and other advanced Western technology through intermediary countries. including china.

Earlier this week, Beijing began holding joint military exercises with Belarus, a close Russian ally, at a training range just miles from the Polish border, the Belarusian Defense Ministry said in a statement translated by Google. telegram post. Belarusian territory has previously served as a springboard for Russia to invade neighboring Ukraine.

In February 2023, on the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine, China proposed a peace framework for the conflict between Moscow—a month later, it successfully used the goodwill it had earned as a trading partner to broker a reconciliation between. Like Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s peace plan and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin’s recent conditions for launching diplomatic talks, they have so far failed to gain support.

Earlier this week, China was the third stop on Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s world tour. After visiting Ukraine and Russia, Orban met with Xi Jinping in Beijing and praised China as “critical power supply” to resolve hostilities.

After years of velvet glove diplomacy and treating China as a distant concern, Nato said on Wednesday that Beijing “continues to pose a systemic challenge to Euro-Atlantic security”, underscoring concerns from the world’s second-largest economy and its activities in Europe So-called false information.

Back in March, NATO members the United States and Britain accused China of conducting a years-long cyber espionage campaign against politicians, businesses and journalists. FBI Director Christopher Wray said the actions exposed “China’s continued and brutal efforts to undermine our nation’s cybersecurity and target Americans and our innovation.” Said at that time.

In response, the Chinese Embassy in the UK condemned the UK’s “sinister actions”. “The UK’s claim that China is responsible for malicious online activity against the UK is completely unfounded and constitutes malicious defamation,” it said at the time.

NATO has also warned of China’s alleged nuclear ambitions.

“The People’s Republic of China continues to rapidly expand and diversify its nuclear arsenal with more warheads and more advanced delivery systems. We urge the People’s Republic of China to engage in discussions to reduce strategic risks and promote stability through transparency,” the NATO communiqué said. , and warned the allies to simultaneously increase “common awareness” and strengthen preparations to guard against China’s “coercive tactics and efforts to split the alliance.”

federation of american scientists estimated china As of March, Russia’s total number of warheads was 500, accounting for only 9% of Russia’s nuclear arsenal, which has the largest nuclear capabilities since inheriting the Soviet stockpile.

“China is expanding its nuclear arsenal faster than any other country,” said Hans Christensen, deputy senior researcher at the International Peach Institute in Stockholm. Come back in Junewhen the institute released its annual publication analyzing the world’s nuclear forces.

SPRI found last month: “China’s nuclear arsenal is expected to continue to grow over the next decade, and China’s number of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) may reach or exceed those of the Russian Federation or the United States.”

CNBC has contacted China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. China’s Mission to the EU lashes back explain The NATO statement “hype-sports China-Russia relations, weakens and reshapes the rules-based international order” and is “full of Cold War mentality and bellicose rhetoric.”

The statement also said that the China-related paragraphs are provocative and are obviously lies and smears. We firmly reject and are strongly dissatisfied with these accusations and have made solemn representations to NATO.

According to Reuters, the leaders of several Indo-Pacific countries including Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea are attending the NATO summit in Washington before NATO’s comments on China, continuing a practice begun after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.