conflicts
China criticizes NATO for expanding its sphere of influence
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaking to students at Keio University in Tokyo during his visit to Japan. photo
© Eugene Hoshiko/AP/dpa
At a recent meeting with the Prime Minister of Japan, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg lashed out at China. From there comes sharp criticism.
China has sharply criticized NATO. After warnings from NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that China poses a threat to Taiwan, Beijing’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Wednesday that NATO was “manufacturing a Chinese threat.” The spokeswoman accused the North Atlantic Defense Alliance of wanting to strengthen its ties with Asia-Pacific countries and expand its sphere of influence beyond its traditional defense zone, despite claiming to be a regional alliance. This development requires great vigilance.
The spokeswoman was responding to Stoltenberg’s visit to South Korea and Japan earlier in the week. The Asia-Pacific region is “not the battleground for geopolitical competition” and does not welcome “a Cold War mentality and bloc confrontation,” Mao Ning said. With his visit to Seoul and Tokyo, Stoltenberg wanted to advance security policy cooperation with the Asian partner countries and expressly pointed out a threat from China.
“China is significantly expanding its armed forces, including nuclear weapons, harassing its neighbors and threatening Taiwan,” Stoltenberg said the day before after a meeting with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo. Beijing is closely monitoring the West’s handling of Russia’s war against Ukraine and is learning “lessons that may influence its future decisions,” he said. “What is happening in Europe today could happen in East Asia tomorrow.”