China warns Nato against 'provoking confrontation'
China on Thursday warned Nato against "provoking confrontation" over its ties with Russia, after the alliance accused it of playing a key role in helping Moscow's assault on Ukraine. Beijing said a declaration from Nato leaders from their Washington summit was full of "belligerent rhetoric" and the China-related content has provocations and lies. The Nato statement claimed that China had "become a decisive enabler of Russia's war against Ukraine", and that Beijing continues to pose systemic challenges to Europe and to security. It also claimed 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. "The declaration of the Nato summit in Washington is full of Cold War mentality and belligerent rhetoric, and China-related content is full of provocations, lies, incitement and smears," the spokesperson added. Beijing put forward a 12-point paper more than a year ago that set out general principles for ending the war, but did not get into specifics. China has also repeatedly hit out at Nato criticisms and has warned against its expansion into the Asia-Pacific region. Top officials of Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, in attendance at Nato, have forged stronger ties with the security alliance. On Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry said: "We firmly oppose Nato acting beyond its characterisation as a regional defensive alliance, inserting itself into the Asia-Pacific to incite confrontation and rivalry, and disrupting the prosperity and stability in this region." (AFP/Reuters)