Top Chinese and Russian officials yesterday said that foreign forces were seeking to sow turmoil in Asia and beyond as they opened an international defense conference in Beijing.
Beijing has billed this week’s Xiangshan Forum as its answer to Singapore’s Shangri-La Dialogue and says that representatives of 90 countries are taking part, including Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu.
China is holding the forum without a sitting defense chief, having abruptly announced the sacking of Li Shangfu (李尚福) as minister last week without explanation.
Photo: AP
Speaking at the conference’s opening ceremony, Zhang Youxia (張又俠), one of China’s most senior military officials, painted a grim picture of the international outlook, blaming countries he did not name for the turmoil.
“As we look across the world today, hotspot issues are arising one after another. The pain of war, chaos and turmoil, and loss of life are constantly playing out,” he said.
“Some countries, for fear that the world may stabilize, deliberately create turmoil, interfere in regional issues, interfere in other countries’ internal affairs and instigate color revolutions,” he said.
“Behind the scenes, they hand out knives and think nothing of provoking people into wars, ensuring that they’re the ones who benefit from the chaos,” he added.
However, Zhang also said that China was seeking to improve military-to-military ties with the US, with whom tensions have soared over the disputed South China Sea and Beijing’s drills around Taiwan.
“We are also willing to develop China-US military relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation,” he told delegates.
Speaking after Zhang, Shoigu also warned that Washington was seeking to provoke instability in Asia.
“Having provoked an acute crisis in Europe, the West is trying to expand the crisis potential in the Asia Pacific,” he told delegates.
“Direct involvement of countries with nuclear arsenals multiplies the strategic risks,” he said.
“The West’s line towards escalation with Russia poses a risk of direct conflict between nuclear powers, which will result in catastrophic consequences,” he added.
China has refused to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has deepened economic, diplomatic and military cooperation with Moscow since the start of the war.
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