Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister, Wang Yi has said China is open to dialogue and exchanges on the basis of equality and mutual respect with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO).
He made the remarks during a virtual meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday.
Wang said, “China has not been and will not be a rival to NATO.
“China firmly pursues a national defense policy that is defensive in nature and is committed to peaceful development.
“China will never seek hegemony, expansion or a sphere of influence and is ready to share development dividends with other countries.”
While noting that some NATO member countries sent ships and aircraft to China recently, Wang said that there is no need for the establishment of new military blocs in the Asia-Pacific region.
“There should be no more confrontation between major powers, still less should there be cliques aimed at agitating for a new Cold War,” he said.
He further said that NATO should stick to its geographic orientation and play a constructive role in regional peace, stability and development.
According to the Secretary General of NATO since 2014, Jens Stoltenberg, NATO does not regard China as an opponent and is ready to develop constructive relations with China on the basis of mutual respect and without requirements.
Wang and Stoltenberg therefore agreed that the virtual meeting was positive and constructive and would like to make good use of the existing dialogue mechanism and promote practical cooperation in counter-terrorism, anti-piracy, cyberspace and international peacekeeping.
