NATO leaders must step up their common policy towards an increasingly sovereign China, NATO Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Sunday, ahead of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Brussels.
In an interview with the Canadian public network CBC, the Jens Stoltenberg claimed that China has the second largest defense budget in the world, the largest in the Navy, and is investing heavily in new military equipment, “something that affects our security.”
“THE China does not share our values ”, added the Secretary General, referring specifically to the suppression of democratic demonstrations in Hong Kong, the way (Beijing) oppresses minorities such as the Uighurs and the use of modern technology, social media networking and face recognition, to monitor its people, to a degree unknown until now “.
“All this makes it important for NATO to develop a policy, to strengthen our policy on China,” he said.
At the same time, Stoldenberg noted that it is important to hold talks with China on issues such as climate change or arms control.
He called the detention in China of two Canadian nationals, Michael Covring and Michael Speivor, accused of espionage completely unacceptable.
Ottawa has called the detention of the two men arbitrary, saying it was retaliation following the arrest in Canada – at the request of the United States – of Meng Wangzhou, a senior executive at the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei.
“When a country does something it does not like, (China) reacts aggressively,” Stoldenberg said.
The secretary-general acknowledged that difficult talks had taken place between NATO allies under Trump, but said the alliance remained strong and strong.
“We now have an American president, President Biden, who is strongly committed to NATO and US security,” he said.
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