China says NATO 'a product of Cold war, should have become history long ago'

In a key development, China has said North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a product of the Cold war and that it should have become 'history' long ago. In a daily press briefing on Wednesday, April 6, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian also advised 'relevant countries' to exercise caution in further developing relations with NATO. 

Zhao Lijian also accused the AUKUS nations of having a 'Cold War mindset' and asked the US, the UK, and Australia to fulfil their international obligations and do more things that contribute to regional peace and stability. Further calling AUKUS an Anglo-Saxon clique where the Cold War mentality persists, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson accused the bloc of using the 'old trick' of provoking military confrontation and adding fuel to the flame lingers. 

Zhao said, "Its ultimate goal is to build a NATO replica in the Asia-Pacific to serve the US hegemony and self-interests through and through. Asia-Pacific countries will resolutely say no to it for sure."

China's official statement comes as the US, the UK, and Australia announced plans to work on hypersonic weapons under their new trilateral security pact, AUKUS. They informed that their decision is also to cooperate on developing enhanced techniques to operate in electronic warfare. 

NATO vows to not let the Russia-Ukraine war escalate

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that NATO is not sending its troops to be on the ground in Ukraine. Ahead of the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting in Belgium, Stoltenberg clarified that the organisation would not send its troops to Ukraine. “NATO is not sending troops to be on the ground. We also have a responsibility to prevent this conflict from escalating beyond Ukraine, and becoming even more deadly, even more, dangerous and destructive,” he said.

Ukraine appeals to NATO for more weapons

On Thursday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba asked NATO to supply more weapons as Russian armed forces intensified their attacks on major cities. Addressing the media along with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in Belgium, the Ukrainian lawmaker said, "My agenda is very simple. It has only three items on it. It's weapons, weapons, and weapons."

As the world condemned Russian war crimes, the Minister further emphasised that there won’t be any other killings like “Bucha” if NATO injects more ammunition into Ukraine. Kuleba is currently in Belgium to attend the summit, which also marks foreign ministers from other G7 countries in attendance. 

Image: AP