BUCHAREST — NATO allies are concerned about China’s rapid and opaque military buildup and its cooperation with Russia, and discussed concrete ways to address the challenges posed by Beijing on Wednesday, said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“The members of our alliance remain concerned by the PRC’s (People’s Republic of China) coercive policies, by its use of disinformation, by its rapid, opaque military buildup, including its cooperation with Russia,” Blinken told a news conference after a two-day meeting of foreign ministers from the Western defense alliance.
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“But we also remain committed to maintaining a constructive dialog with China wherever we can and we welcome opportunities to work together on common challenges.”
While NATO continues to be focused on maintaining unified support for Ukraine, members also want to boost the alliance’s resilience by considering new challenges, including those posed by China, Blinken said.
“What we talked about today is, again, making sure that we are working to adapt in concrete ways to meet the challenge,” Blinken said without elaborating.
The United States and its allies recognize there is a competition to shape the world beyond the Cold War divisions
“There’s a recognition that there’s also in many ways, what Europeans call a systemic rivalry between China and many of our countries,” Blinken said. “But there’s also a recognition that wherever possible, we have to find ways to cooperate on the really big issues.” (Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; additional reporting by Doina Chiacu in Washington; editing by Mark Heinrich and Bernadette Baum)
