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Nato poised to harden position on China as support for Russia deepens distrust
- China is openly contesting the rules-based international order, Nato chief says in sharp shift in tone
- Summit preceded by survey across member states showing uptick in views of China as a security threat
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As Nato leaders prepare to convene in Madrid next week for their annual summit, observers say the world’s largest defence alliance is likely to harden its stance towards China over its position on Russia’s war in Ukraine.
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China is expected to be identified for the first time in Nato’s new strategic concept, a key document charting the 30-member bloc’s future security trail and military development to be adopted at the summit.
A recent Nato survey across all member states found China was viewed as a security threat by 52 per cent of respondents, an increase of 11 percentage points from 2021.
“China is openly contesting the rules-based international order,” Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg told an event organised by media firm Politico in Brussels this week, in a sharp departure from his tone a year ago.
Chinese investments in new modern military equipment and desire to control critical infrastructure in Europe had made it all the more important for Nato to develop a stronger stance, the secretary general said.
The tough rhetoric stood in contrast to Stoltenberg’s comments at the Nato summit in Brussels last year, where he said that while China’s military build-up, growing influence and coercive behaviour posed some challenges to the alliance’s security, there remained opportunities to engage with Beijing, especially on “issues like climate change and arms control”.
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