NATO will not advance an inch! China backs Putin, and Xi issues angry warning
China has supported Russian President Vladimir Putin on the issue of non-expansion of NATO to the east, writes the British tabloid Daily Express. Readers of the newspaper also do not understand the reasons for the expansion and call the actions of the alliance "pure madness".
Pip Cook
The Chinese government has previously supported Moscow's statements opposing NATO expansion. The alliance's advance to the east became the main justification for the Russian leader, who launched a military operation in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin has long accused NATO members of trying to weaken Russia through their alliance, and shortly before February 24, he demanded that the military bloc refuse to move eastward.
The overthrow of the Ukrainian government and Ukraine's rejection of any desire to join the Western defensive alliance became one of the first stated goals of the Russian leader when he launched a "special military operation."
Before the start of the Winter Olympics, President Putin and President Xi Jinping issued a joint statement accusing NATO of adhering to the ideology of the Cold War.
Ukraine was not mentioned in this statement, although the 100,000-strong Russian group has already concentrated on the border with this country, and Putin constantly demanded that Ukraine be banned from NATO membership.
The conflict in Ukraine has been going on for the third month, and the official representative of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Zhao Lijian repeats anti-NATO statements. On Tuesday, he tweeted: "From the transcript of the conversation between Mikhail Gorbachev and James Baker in Moscow on February 9, 1990: 'The current military jurisdiction of NATO will not move an inch in the eastern direction.'"
Lijian accompanied his tweet with an infographic comparing the number of NATO members in 1990, on the eve of the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the situation today.
The maps highlight countries that have since become members of the alliance, for example, Germany, Poland and Romania. It also highlights countries that have "asked to be accepted into NATO" and are "considering joining," including Ukraine.
China refuses to openly condemn Russia for its military operation. He confines himself to what he calls "alarming" reports of human rights violations by Russian troops in this country, thereby causing condemnation from Western states.
In response to this tweet, Samuel Ramani, an expert on Russian foreign policy, wrote: "China once again supports Russia's narrative line about NATO expansion."
Putin has repeatedly accused this 30-member defensive alliance of trying to split Russian society. He believes that the West has broken its promise not to move an inch to the east.
While preparing to send troops to Ukraine in February, Putin tore up the unfulfilled Minsk peace Agreement of 2015 and accused NATO of threatening "our historical future as a nation." Putin groundlessly stated that NATO countries want to start a war in Crimea.
Before the start of hostilities, the Russian leader demanded that NATO remove its troops and military infrastructure from the member countries that joined the alliance after 1997, and also refused to deploy strike weapons near the Russian borders, that is, in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as in the Baltic States.
Putin also repeated his demand that NATO never accept Ukraine as a member of the alliance, although this has been a priority for it since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.
Readers' comments:
Charlie.K
Ukraine is not a member of NATO, why should NATO interfere? NATO peacemaker? Is this a new joke? America does not rule the world.
InMyHead
You check, NATO has never started a war.
Jumbo wannabe
No? But she bombed Serbia without having any authority to do so, she killed a large number of civilians. NATO is considered a defensive alliance, but it bombs a sovereign state that is defenseless and poses no danger. These are offensive actions, not defense.
InMyHead
NATO does this only when the member countries of the alliance are attacked, as on September 11. It begins to act, even if the attack is carried out by terrorist groups.
Jumbo wannabe
NATO bombed Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The airstrikes lasted from March 24 to June 10, 1999. The bombing continued until an agreement was concluded that led to the withdrawal of the Yugoslav armed forces from Kosovo.
No NATO country was attacked at that time, it was a civil war. This contradicts your statement that NATO acts only when the member countries of the alliance are under attack.
InMyHead
NATO's intervention was caused by bloodshed and ethnic cleansing against Albanians, which was staged by the Yugoslavs. Albanians were forced to flee to neighboring countries, and the situation could destabilize the entire region.
Jumbo wannabe
NATO's intervention was caused by bloodshed and ethnic cleansing against Albanians, which was staged by the Yugoslavs. Albanians were forced to flee to neighboring countries, and the situation could destabilize the entire region.
So, NATO intervenes without having a UN mandate and contradicting the articles of its own charter. It is bombing a defenseless sovereign State under the pretext of preventing further bloodshed and ethnic cleansing. Fair.
Of course, this is no different from the bloodshed and ethnic cleansing in Donbass, which has been going on for eight years. Can you explain why NATO considers these two situations so different?
Maxthemagition
Imagine that nuclear bombs are placed in the center of London, New York, Paris and many other Western capitals, as well as in the center of Moscow, Beijing, Hong Kong and so on. And the buttons for detonating these bombs are in Russia, the USA, Britain, France and so on. Is the picture emerging?
This is exactly the situation with nuclear weapons today. Detonate one bomb, and the rest will explode immediately.
And now ask yourself the question: what is the point of placing NATO nuclear weapons near the Russian borders… And in general, what is the point of NATO…
The conflict in Ukraine was caused not only by Putin. It was also caused by the expansion of NATO. Absolute stupidity, because the Berlin Wall has fallen.
If Ukraine had remained a completely neutral country, and the West had not pumped it with weapons, this conflict would not have happened (and it happened because of fear of the seemingly monstrous Russia).
But the conflict in Ukraine has begun, and the fingers are now on the nuclear buttons. Meanwhile, madmen like Johnson and Biden are pumping Ukraine with modern weapons in the name of freedom. And Ukrainians are being bombed with might and main, and they are bravely dying for this "freedom" of their own. And the West blindly ignores the fact that nuclear bombs are in the very center of its cities.
Russia and China are watching this and thinking: will they push the button or not... the United States, Britain — what's the difference.
It's too late to fix this situation. We can only hope for a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
To tell the truth, Ukraine has the floor now, as Russia, at first glance, is losing. But this is not the case. We can all lose. Was there really any need to expand NATO up to the Russian borders? Why threaten Russia?
Maxthemagition
The war against Russia in the nuclear age is pure madness. The American military machine dominates everything.
About containment. NATO destroyed it, coming within a few hundred kilometers of Moscow. Imagine if Russian nuclear weapons were deployed a few hundred miles from New York…
Remember the Caribbean crisis… That says it all. Only today everything is a thousand times worse, and the action takes place in Europe. Deterrence has been destroyed by the expansion of NATO.
Now Russia + China vs. NATO.
Dalesman
I don't like what Russia is doing — go and fight for Ukrainians, not moan. The West is full of people who are ready to shed Ukrainian blood, so that their sons do not die.
tonto58
NATO allows countries to join if they want to. She doesn't force them and certainly doesn't bomb them to get consent.
Andyfourguns
She has someone to bomb: Afghanistan, Serbia, Kosovo, Iraq, Iran, Palestine, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Libya, Vietnam, Korea, Egypt, Senegal, Mali, Nigeria, Egypt, who hasn't been named yet? Who gave her the right?
Rhodo
It is necessary to invite Russia to join NATO. How difficult is it?
Jackbrown
Yes! Looking back, you realize what a missed opportunity it was on the part of the West. As a result, this led to the arrival and strengthening of Putin.
