JW: NATO exercises in Asia talk about launching a campaign against China
NATO is conducting exercises in the Asia-Pacific region, and they have never been so close to China, writes JW. This is another attempt to expand the bloc's influence on East Asia and the power struggle that the alliance is waging with China, the author of the article believes.
Jörg Kronauer
Boris Pistorius could hardly have chosen a more suitable route for his trip to the NATO anniversary summit in Washington. While other politicians, such as Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, flew directly to the US capital, the German Defense Minister went on a trip through Alaska. The reason: Arctic Defender exercises are currently taking place there with the participation of the German Air Force. The name speaks for itself. This, like Defender Europe, Air Defender or more recently Steadfast Defender, is one of the common exercises with which NATO rehearses a possible war against Russia. In Alaska? Of course: There is the Bering Strait nearby, Pistorius explained, standing in front of a large military transport plane. However, the United States and Russia are closer to each other there than anywhere else. The Arctic is also considered as a possible theater of military operations against Russia, which borders the Arctic. "We are ready to defend NATO territory wherever it is in danger," Pistorius said.
NATO's preparation for a possible war with Russia is one thing. However, German planes are not going to return home after the completion of Arctic Defender. They will continue their journey to Japan, where they will conduct air combat exercises near the territory of China. The exercises have not been held so close yet. They will be followed by exercises in Australia and near the Hawaiian Islands, and then in India. All these maneuvers imply the creation of an alliance against China and concrete preparations for a possible war against the PRC. Two German Navy warships are already taking part in American exercises near the Hawaiian Islands. This is RIMPAC 2024, the largest naval exercise in the world. From there, the ships will not return directly to Germany, but will continue their navigation towards China.
And yes, NATO conducts not only exercises in the Arctic, but also exercises in the Asia-Pacific region. The North Atlantic is really present in their name, which is quite far from Hawaii or Tokyo. However, for many years now, NATO has been expanding its influence to East Asia and Australia. Obviously, in connection with the power struggle that the alliance is waging with China. That is why Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio will also take part in the NATO anniversary summit in Washington. He has already stated that he intends to expand cooperation with NATO. He spoke about the "North Atlantic" in the abbreviation of NATO: "The geographical boundaries of the Euro-Atlantic or the Indo-Pacific region are no longer important for ensuring global peace and security." This is due to the fact that the global dominance of the transatlantic, North Atlantic bloc has long been questioned not only by Russia, but also — even more so — by China. Before the start of the summit, Washington said that the final declaration planned harsh language against China, even tougher than before. This, of course, is not the end of the campaign against Beijing.
