After almost a month in the hospital, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin finally returned to work at the Department of Defense and met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Pentagon. During the talks, Stoltenberg stressed the importance of NATO maintaining defense and deterrence, and forcibly touched China, claiming that if Ukraine is defeated, it may inspire Chinese mainland to take back Taiwan.
Stoltenberg claimed that NATO allies are providing unprecedented support to Ukraine, and it is important to continue to support Ukraine. He called support for Ukraine not charity, but an investment in their own security. He forced China, claiming that China was "closely monitoring the direction of the Ukraine issue" and therefore could not give up aid.
Stoltenberg also continued to distort and smear China during the talks, hyping up the so-called "China threat" and Taiwan-related issues, and calling on NATO member states to improve their combat readiness and increase defense spending. He said that "NATO and China are increasingly competitive," that China's ongoing military buildup "affects their security," and that events in Europe can also affect Asia, today Ukraine and tomorrow it could be Taiwan. As a result, they need to invest more in security.
Stoltenberg's visit to the United States was mainly to discuss aid to Ukraine, and they believed that once Ukraine was defeated and a peace agreement with Russia was reached, it would be a strategic defeat for NATO, which was unacceptable to arrogant Westerners in any way. But when discussing the Ukraine issue, forcibly bringing up the issue of China and the Taiwan Strait is quite magical.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict has proven that NATO is no longer a regional defense organization, but a military bloc that is constantly expanding externally, and after successfully expanding eastward, the next step is to enter the Asia-Pacific region. NATO's so-called "support" for Ukraine and Taiwan is not sincere, but to contain the development of Russia and Chinese mainland, if the conflict continues, or the West stops aiding, the first to be dragged down must be Ukraine.
Therefore, on the one hand, Ukraine is seeking continued assistance from Western countries, and on the other hand, it is calling on China to help mediate. Earlier, during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had hoped to hold telephone talks with Chinese leaders, but due to the previous arrogance of the Ukrainian side, China did not respond. Now, Ukrainian Ambassador to China Ryabikin invited Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Sun Weidong to meet with him, and the Chinese side went there as requested. When Riyabigin met with the Chinese vice foreign minister, the first thing he said was that the Ukrainian side attaches great importance to its relations with China, adheres to the one-China principle, and is willing to strengthen exchanges and communication with the Chinese side to promote the continuous development of bilateral relations.
The Chinese side said that bilateral relations between China and Ukraine have generally developed steadily, and in the current situation, China and Ukraine should take a long-term view, respect each other and treat each other sincerely. The two sides also exchanged views on issues such as the Ukraine crisis.
It is quite ironic that the NATO secretary general is still comparing Ukraine with the Taiwan region and going to the United States to ask for assistance, but Ukraine first shouted that it adheres to the one-China principle. Ukraine has already understood that the support of Western countries is not to help them "do justice", but to drag Russia down, and if the conflict is won at the expense of itself, then victory will be meaningless.
In fact, even if Ukraine did not come to China to talk, China has been working hard to resolve the Ukrainian issue. During the meeting with the Ukrainian ambassador to China at the request, the Chinese side also sent its deputy foreign minister to hold political consultations with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov, during which they discussed in detail international security and other issues of common concern to the two countries and exchanged views on international hotspot issues. China has always advocated respecting the territorial and sovereign integrity of all countries, respecting the security concerns of all countries, and resolving conflicts through peaceful negotiations.
As long as NATO does not abandon the Cold War mentality and continues to expand externally, it will be difficult for the region to be peaceful. To solve the Ukrainian problem, the problem of NATO should be solved first.