July 11 (UPI) — NATO leaders have accused China of being “a decisive enabler of Russia’s war against Ukraine” and demanded that it “cease all material and political support” for the Kremlin’s invasion.
The comment from the 32 members of the defensive military alliance comes Wednesday in the final communique of their summit in Washington, D.C.
It states Beijing has been aiding Moscow through their so-called no limits partnership and its “large-scale support for Russia’s defense industrial base.”
The United States has repeatedly warned China against supporting Russia in its war effort, though it has not said Beijing has been supplying Moscow with weaponry.
The communique Wednesday also stopped short of accusing it of shipping weaponry to Russia, as North Korea has, but specifically mentioned Beijing’s dual-use materials, such as weapons components, equipment and raw materials.
“The PRC cannot enable the largest war in Europe in recent history without this negatively impacting its interests and reputation,” it warned.
The People’s Republic of China is China’s official name.
The communique continued its criticism of China by stating it poises “systemic challenges to Euro-Atlantic security” and that the bloc is concerned over its space capabilities and activities as well as its efforts to “rapidly expand and diversity its nuclear arsenal with more warheads and a larger number of sophisticated delivery systems.
“We urge the PRC to engage in strategic risk reduction discussions and promote stability through transparency,” NATO said, adding that while they are open to engagement with China “we are boosting our shared awareness, enhancing our resilience and preparedness and protecting against the PRC’s coercive tactics and efforts to divide the Alliance.”
China maintains that it is not providing Russia with weaponry and enjoys trade relations with Moscow that have no affect any other country.
Beijing’s mission to the European Union on Wednesday lambasted the communique for being “filled with Cold War mentality and belligerent rhetoric.”
“The China-related paragraphs are provocative with obvious lies and smears,” it said in a statement, while suggesting it’s the defensive alliance that is exacerbating the war in Ukraine.
“NATO should not become the disrupter of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific or a tool used by certain power to maintain hegemony,” it said.
Relations between China and Russia have grown amid their fracturing relations with Western democracies.
Earlier this month, President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of an Eurasian intergovernmental security summit, their second meeting in as many months.
The NATO summit began Tuesday and is to end Thursday.