NATO allies call China ‘decisive enabler’ of Russia in Ukraine war as bloc monitors security threats in Asia

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China is a “decisive enabler” of Russia’s war against Ukraine, NATO leaders said Wednesday, as the defense alliance hardens its stance on Beijing and the “systemic challenges” they say it poses to their countries’ security.

The joint statement marks NATO’s sharpest tone yet on China’s role in a war that has galvanized the 75-year-old bloc, which celebrated its anniversary this week at a three-day leaders’ summit in Washington hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden.

China’s “limitless” partnership with Russia and its “large-scale support for Russia’s defense industrial base” enable Moscow to wage its war, NATO leaders said in their statement, as they urged Beijing to “cease all material and political support for Russia’s war effort.”

U.S. and European leaders have in recent months accused China of supporting Russia’s defense sector by exporting dual-use goods. Beijing has denied supplying weapons and said it maintains strict controls over such goods.

NATO leaders also elaborated more than in the past on their concerns about China’s growing capabilities and activities in space, and reiterated their previous unease over what they called Beijing’s “malign cyber and hybrid activities,” including disinformation and the “rapid” expansion of its nuclear arsenal.

“We remain open to constructive engagement with the PRC, including to build mutual transparency to preserve the security interests of the Alliance,” the statement said, referring to China by the initials of its official name.

“At the same time, we are strengthening our shared awareness, building our resilience and preparedness, and protecting against the PRC’s coercive tactics and efforts to divide the Alliance.”

The statement by NATO leaders Wednesday comes as the 32-member alliance — historically focused on security in North America and Europe — has in recent years deepened its engagement with U.S. allies in Asia and increasingly sees its security as tied to the region, even as member countries have pursued divergent policies toward China.

For the third year in a row, the leaders of New Zealand, Japan and South Korea attended the NATO leaders’ summit, a further sign of the bloc’s closer ties with those countries, as well as with Australia.

Ties between China and Russia are growing closer

Beijing has deepened its political, economic and military ties with Moscow since President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in February 2022 declared a “limitless” partnership – and their shared opposition to what they called NATO expansion – during the Russian leader’s visit to the Chinese capital, weeks before his full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

China has overtaken the European Union to become Russia’s largest trading partner, providing a crucial lifeline to its economy, which has been heavily sanctioned in the wake of the invasion, while the two nuclear-armed neighbors have continued to hold joint military exercises.

Meanwhile, China has claimed neutrality in the war and sought to position itself as a potential peace broker, even as U.S. and European leaders have grown increasingly alarmed by what they see as Beijing’s support for Moscow through economic and diplomatic support, as well as the provision of dual-use goods.

On Thursday, China criticized the NATO statement, calling it “filled with Cold War mentality and belligerent rhetoric,” and called it “provocative, containing obvious lies and smears.”

“China is not the originator of the Ukrainian crisis. China’s position on Ukraine is open and transparent. We are willing to promote peace talks and seek a political settlement,” the Chinese mission to the European Union said in a statement.

The Chinese statement also reiterated Beijing’s position that it has never supplied lethal weapons in the conflict and enforces strict controls on the export of dual-use weapons, defending its trade with Russia as “normal.”

US and European leaders have recently sounded the alarm, stressing that these exports are revitalizing Russia’s defense sector and allowing it to survive despite heavy international sanctions. The US has said that dual-use exports have included the production of tanks, ammunition and armored vehicles.

Both the United States and the European Union have sanctioned Chinese entities they accuse of supporting the war effort.

The statement by NATO leaders is the latest step in the bloc’s gradual hardening of its tone toward China in recent years.

NATO leaders first spoke of the need to jointly address the “opportunities and challenges” posed by China in a 2019 statement, before referring to the “systemic challenges” posed by the country in 2021.

This shift has been accompanied by an increased focus in US policy on the Indo-Pacific amid growing rivalry with Beijing, as China, under Xi’s leadership, has become increasingly aggressive in the region and in its broader foreign policy.

NATO’s focus on Asia has also accelerated in the past two and a half years because of the hardening of geopolitical fault lines following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Kremlin’s closer relations not only with China but also with North Korea and Iran.

NATO leaders also said Wednesday that Pyongyang and Tehran were “fueling” Russia’s war with “direct military support” and condemned North Korea’s exports of “artillery shells and ballistic missiles” to Russia — which several governments say they have been tracking since last year, when Putin hosted North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Russia’s Far East.

“The Indo-Pacific is important to NATO, as developments in this region directly affect Euro-Atlantic security,” the leaders said in their statement.

“We are strengthening dialogue to address interregional challenges and improving our practical cooperation, including through flagship projects in the areas of support for Ukraine, cyber defense, countering disinformation and technology,” he said.

Beijing has been watching NATO’s growing engagement with other powers in the Asia-Pacific region with caution. Observers say China hopes to become the dominant force in the region and push back against the U.S. presence there, as Washington strengthens its long-standing security partnerships and interests in the Indo-Pacific.

China and Russia have also converged on their shared opposition to NATO, part of a broader push by both countries to reshape a global order they see as unfairly dominated by the United States, and both have blamed the Western security alliance for provoking Moscow to invade Ukraine.

In its statement on Thursday, Beijing’s mission to the EU called on NATO to “correct its misperception of China” and “abandon the Cold War mentality and zero-sum game.”

“The Asia-Pacific region is a place of peaceful development, not a battleground for geopolitical competition… NATO must not become a disruptor of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region,” the statement said.

This story has been updated with additional information.