China and Russia threaten NATO

 

China and Russia threaten NATO amid calls for Ukraine 'disappearance'

 

• China and Russia have threatened NATO and Ukraine 
• China warned NATO that it was 'provoking confrontation' 
• Russia meanwhile called for the 'disappearance' of Ukraine 

China and Russia have both threatened NATO against 'provoking confrontation' over the bloc's claims that Xi Jingping's nation holds a key role in Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. 

NATO leaders said in a declaration at their summit in Washington on Wednesday that China had 'become a decisive enabler of Russia's war against Ukraine', adding that Beijing's 'so-called 'no limits' partnership' and 'large-scale support for Russia's defence industrial base' were of 'profound concern'.

In response, a spokesperson for Beijing's mission to the European Union said: 'NATO should stop hyping up the so-called China threat and provoking confrontation and rivalry, and do more to contribute to world peace and stability.'

'It is known to all that China is not the creator (of) the Ukraine crisis. China's position on Ukraine is open and aboveboard,' they added.

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev chimed in, denouncing NATO's summit promise to grant eventual membership to Ukraine and said Russia should work towards the 'disappearance' of both Ukraine and the military alliance.

 In a social media post, Medvedev quoted in English from NATO's declaration at its Washington summit this week: 'We will continue to support (Ukraine) on its irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership.'

 

He went on, in Russian: 'The conclusion is obvious. We must do everything so that Ukraine's 'irreversible path' to NATO ends with either the disappearance of Ukraine or the disappearance of NATO. Or even better - the disappearance of both.'

The Russian state has backed Medvedev's response, with Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov telling Russian news agencies today that the nation is planning 'response measures' to contain the "very serious threat" from NATO.

He added that NATO was now 'fully involved in the conflict over Ukraine.' 

Medvedev, who during his 2008-2012 presidency was regarded as a pro-Western moderniser, has reinvented himself as an arch-hawk since the start of the war in Ukraine, something Moscow calls a 'special military operation.'

In particular, he has repeatedly warned the U.S. and its allies that their arming of Kyiv could lead to a 'nuclear apocalypse'.

 

Any decision on the use of Russian nuclear weapons would belong to President Vladimir Putin. But diplomats say the views of Medvedev, who is deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, give an indication of hawkish thinking at the top of the Kremlin which has cast the war as an existential struggle with the West. 

China has refused to condemn Russia's invasion and last year released a paper calling for a 'political settlement' to the conflict, which Western countries said could enable Russia to retain much of the territory it has seized in Ukraine.

China and Russia's strategic partnership has grown closer since the invasion.

Beijing presents itself as a neutral party in the war and says it is not sending lethal assistance to either side, unlike the United States and other Western nations.

It has however offered a critical lifeline to Russia's isolated economy, with trade booming since the conflict began.

But that economic partnership has come under close scrutiny from the West in recent months, with Washington vowing to go after financial institutions that facilitate Moscow's war effort.

 

The United States and Europe have also accused Beijing of selling components and equipment necessary to keep Moscow's military production afloat.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in April this included 'machine tools, semiconductors, other dual-use items that have helped Russia rebuild the defence industrial base that sanctions and export controls had done so much to degrade'.

Beijing has denied claims it is aiding Russia's fighting in Ukraine and insisted it won't accept 'criticism or pressure' over its ties with Moscow.

And on Thursday, its foreign ministry accused the alliance of 'prejudice, smearing and provocation'.

'NATO's rhetoric about China's responsibility in Ukraine is unjustified and malicious,' spokesman Lin Jian said.

'We urge NATO to reflect on the root causes of the crisis and its own actions, listen carefully to the just voice of the international community, and take concrete actions to ease the situation, instead of shifting the blame to others.'