China will push Russia to attack NATO countries to divert the bloc's attention from the Asia-Pacific region. If Beijing is going to attack Taiwan, it will very likely use Russia to attack Europe.
Points of attention
- China could potentially manipulate Russia to attack NATO countries as part of a strategy to divert the bloc's attention from the Asia-Pacific region.
- NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte highlights the risk of China involving Russia in a conflict with Europe, particularly if an attack on Taiwan occurs.
- To counter threats from Russia and China, it is crucial to make any potential NATO attack so detrimental for the Kremlin that it becomes an unviable option.
China is inciting Russia against NATO countries — Rutte
This is stated by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
Rutte explained that the US, while fulfilling the task of protecting NATO territory in Europe, is protecting its own positions in Asia. The US, he said, cannot be secure if the Atlantic, Europe and the Arctic are not protected.
NATO Secretary General suggested that China could use Russia to distract the US in Europe to focus on seizing Taiwan. Rutte believes that Americans and Europeans should not be "naive about this."
If Xi Jinping were to attack Taiwan, he would first call his junior partner in all this, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, who lives in Moscow, and tell him, "Hey, I'm going to do this, and I need you to occupy them in Europe by attacking NATO territory.
Mark Rutte
NATO Secretary General
According to Rutte, this scenario is one of the most likely in the future. There are two things that need to be done to deter the Russians and the Chinese. The first is to make the prospect of an attack on NATO so suicidal for the Kremlin that it would never agree to do it.
And secondly, cooperating with the Indo-Pacific region is something that President Trump is very actively promoting. Because we have a close relationship, joint work in the defense industry, innovation between NATO and the Indo-Pacific region.
