Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu on Sunday warned against creating "NATO-style" military alliances in the Asia-Pacific, predicting they would plunge the region into a "whirlwind" of conflict. "Attempts to promote NATO-style (alliances) in the Asia-Pacific region are a way of kidnapping regional countries and exaggerating conflicts and confrontations, which will only plunge the Asia-Pacific into a whirlwind of disputes and conflicts," he warned at a security conference held as part of the Shangri-La dialogue in Singapore.
«
Today's Asia-Pacific needs open and inclusive cooperation, not clustering into small cliques. We must not forget the serious disasters caused by the two world wars to the peoples of all countries, and we must not allow this tragic history to be repeated," the Minister added.
Li did not name any country in particular, but his remarks implicitly target the United States, which has strengthened its alliances and partnerships in the region to counter Beijing's influence. The United States is a member of the AUKUS alliance with Australia and the United Kingdom, and of the QUAD with Australia, India and Japan.
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/MOXXTLJT2Z6VEUX4YEOA3F4B2A.jpg)
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/OORXB2YNDLANHK3OYLEUMD7SPM.jpg)
