• China’s UN envoy asked NATO not to start a fight between the blocs or a new Cold War.
• Zhang Jun said NATO’s five eastward expansions after the Cold War failed to safeguard Europe and produced the seeds of conflict.
• China is concerned about the policy implications of NATO’s “Strategic Concept”.

UNITED NATIONS: China’s permanent representative to the United Nations asked NATO on Tuesday not to use the situation in Ukraine as an excuse to start a fight between the blocs or a new Cold War.

Zhang Jun told the UN Security Council that “The Ukraine crisis has once again sounded the alarm for the world.”

“Security is indivisible. A blind faith in the position of strength, the expansion of military alliances, and the pursuit of one’s own security at the expense of the security of other countries will inevitably lead to security dilemmas.”

Zhang emphasised that NATO’s five eastward expansions after the Cold War failed to safeguard Europe and produced the seeds of conflict.

“The Cold War ended a long time ago. It is necessary for NATO to reconsider its own positioning and its responsibilities, completely abandon the Cold-War mentality that is based on bloc confrontation and strive to build a balanced, effective, and sustainable European security framework in line with the principle of indivisible security,” he stated.

The envoy said China is concerned about the policy implications of NATO’s “Strategic Concept.”

Zhang noted that certain NATO officials have recently portrayed other countries as a danger, but that NATO itself has caused problems around the world.

“We urge NATO to learn its lessons, and not to use the Ukraine crisis as an excuse to stoke worldwide bloc confrontation or a new Cold War, and not to look for imaginary enemies in the Asia Pacific or artificially create contradictions and divisions,” he added.

Zhang said China rejects NATO’s engagement in the Asia Pacific or an Asia-Pacific version of NATO based on military alliances.

“The long-outdated Cold War script must never be reenacted in the Asia Pacific. The kind of turmoil and conflict that are affecting parts of the world must not be allowed to happen in the Asia-Pacific, “he said.

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“Asia Pacific countries share the appreciation of the hard-won peace and prosperity, and the wish to focus on mutually beneficial cooperation in pursuit of common development and revitalization. Any attempt to go against the tide of history is doomed to fail,” he said.

Zhang said the Ukraine issue is sad and disturbing, and dialogue and negotiation are the only ways to restore and consolidate peace.

“For some time now, China has joined all peace-loving countries calling for a ceasefire. We have been committed to promoting peace talks, and making relentless efforts to de-escalate the situation, restore peace, mitigate the humanitarian situation, and stabilize the global economy,” he said.

Zhang said China supports direct dialogue between Russia and Ukraine and welcomes the UN secretary-general’s offices.

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