North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) leaders branded China a continuing security threat, saying the Chinese are seeking to undermine global order, a message that aligns with President Joe Biden's efforts to urge allies to speak out more forcefully against China's economic, military, and human rights actions.
China's objectives and "aggressive conduct create systemic challenges to the rules-based international order and sectors crucial to alliance security," the leaders said in a summit declaration on Monday. While the 30 leaders of state and government avoided referring to China as a rival, they voiced alarm about its "coercive practices," the hidden methods in which it is modernizing its military, and its use of misinformation.
NATO wants China to participate in the international system
Per Mercury News, NATO urged Beijing to honor its international obligations and participate properly in the international system. Biden, who came to the conference after three days in the UK, negotiating with Group of Seven allies, pushed for the G-7 communiqué, which condemned forced labor practices and other human rights violations affecting Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities in China's western Xinjiang province.
The President expressed satisfaction with the communiqué, despite disagreements among allies over how firmly to chastise Beijing. Biden also used his eight-day trip to Europe to urge allies to work more closely together in pressuring Russian President Vladimir Putin over his government's treatment of political dissidents and to do more to combat cyberattacks perpetrated by Russia against private companies and governments around the world.
Biden is adamant that NATO remains a cornerstone of global stability and a critical player in countering these emerging challenges. However, NATO's shift toward China, rather than a laser focus on Russia, is not universally embraced, as per CNBC.
Some of NATO's smaller members, many of whom are situated in Eastern Europe, think that the alliance's security measures should prioritize deterrence against Russian aggression. On Monday morning, Biden met with the presidents of numerous Balkan countries, as well as Poland's president, Andrzej Duda.
The United States maintains a significant military presence in Poland, which is largely seen as a vital deterrent to Russia. In response to Russia's threat of hybrid warfare, NATO member states have raised the possibility of invoking Article 5 of the Mutual Defense Agreement in the event of disruptive misinformation strikes on political institutions and public opinion.
China fires back to NATO, urging to stop "threat theory"
On Tuesday, China retaliated against claims made against it in a communiqué published following the NATO summit, warning that it would not stand by if other countries posed systemic threats to it and that it would closely monitor NATO's strategic adjustments toward China, Global Times reported. The Chinese Mission to the European Union (EU) spokesperson stated that China will not pose "systemic challenges" to others, in response to NATO leaders' stern position on China in a communiqué.
The claims made by NATO have slandered China's peaceful development, misjudged the international situation and its role, and perpetuated a Cold War mentality mixed with group politics, according to the Mission. It was responding to remarks made in a communiqué signed in Brussels by leaders from the alliance's 30 members at the request of the new Biden administration. China has always pursued a defensive national defense strategy and its military development has been lawful, open, and transparent, as per the Mission.
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