China A 'Decisive Enabler' Of Russia's War Against Ukraine, Accuses NATO For First Time

The stern statement was made by NATO in its communiqué making a major departure as until 2019, NATO never officially mentioned China as a concern.

The NATO allies on Wednesday made their most serious rebuke against Beijing calling Cihna a "decisive enabler" of Russia's war against Ukraine and expressed concerns over Beijing's nuclear arsenal and its capabilities in space. The 32 leaders of the alliance approved the sternly worded communiqué during their summit in Washington, making clear that China is becoming a focus of the military alliance. 

The declaration made a major departure as until 2019, NATO never officially mentioned China as a concern, and then only in the blandest of language, reported the New York Times. 

While China has insisted that it does not provide military aid to Russia, it has maintained strong trade ties with its northern neighbour throughout the conflict. Beijing has also accused NATO of overreaching and inciting confrontation in the Indo-Pacific. 

In the declaration, China has been said to become a war enabler through its "no-limits partnership" with Russia and its large-scale support for Russia's defence industrial base, reported the Associated Press. 

“This increases the threat Russia poses to its neighbours and to Euro-Atlantic security. We call on the PRC, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council with a particular responsibility to uphold the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter, to cease all material and political support to Russia’s war effort,” stated the communiqué, referring China by the abbreviation of its official name, the People's Republic of China. 

“The PRC cannot enable the largest war in Europe in recent history without this negatively impacting its interests and reputation,” the declaration read, as per the AP report. 

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg accused China of providing equipment, microelectronics and tools that are “enabling Russia to build the missiles, to build the bombs, to build the aircraft, to build the weapons they use to attack Ukraine.”

The Chinese embassy in Washington refuted the accusations saying China is neither a creator nor a party to the Ukraine crisis. 

“China does not provide weapons to the parties to the conflict and strictly controls the export of dual-use articles, which is widely applauded by the international community,” said Liu Pengyu, the embassy spokesman, reported AP.