<![CDATA[Beijing's nightmare is coming true. China is Nato's new communist target]>
Conflict between Western democracies and the communist Eastern bloc was the key reason behind the founding of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) in 1949 and its rival opponent the Warsaw Pact in 1955.
The alignment of nearly every European nation into one of the two opposing camps " the US-led Western Bloc and Soviet Union-led Eastern Bloc " formalised the global rivalry of the post-World War II period and involved an arms race that endured throughout the cold war. But since the break-up of the Warsaw Pact on March 31, 1991, following the worldwide collapse of socialism and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Nato's reason for being " and its subsequent expansion during the late 1990s to include former Soviet satellite states " has been widely questioned.
However, as member states celebrated its 70th anniversary at a golf resort in Watford on the outskirts of London this month, Nato seemed to have found something to legitimise its existence once more. Another rising communist power is now in its sights: China.
The re-emergence of a semi-alliance between China and Russia will only have encouraged the thought that Beijing can be the common enemy Nato needs to reinvigorate its fading raison d'etre. In the past two decades, the 29-member group has become increasingly divided and disorganised due to the lack of a shared strategic goal, but now it appears to have one. Much as Beijing and Moscow forged closer links due to their shared enemy of the United States, so too have Nato members been pushed back together in the face of China's rise and the emerging Beijing-Moscow axis.
This is despite the fierce bickering between French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Donald Trump over Nato's role, which had dominated the headlines ahead of what initially looked like it would be a largely self-congratulatory ceremony.
France's President Emmanuel Macron addresses the Nato summit in London. Photo: AFP alt=France's President Emmanuel Macron addresses the Nato summit in London. Photo: AFP
Nato's original mission was to counterweigh the power of the Soviet Union and its remit had been largely restricted to North America and Europe, as its name would suggest: the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. Until recently, summits had always been dominated by the threat from the old foe Russia, especially following Moscow's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
However, Western diplomats and strategists are increasingly anxious over the threat posed by China's rising clout, especially amid what they see as a shift by the communist state to embrace more suppressive policies domestically and more assertive policies overseas. They have been caught off guard over the possible formation of an anti-West semi-military alliance between the world's two greatest authoritarian powers.
It is under such circumstances that this year's Nato summit saw significant policy shifts. It now has its eyes on China. This was confirmed when Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said China was on Nato's agenda, as Beijing's growing military capabilities had "implications for all allies". The alliance needed to take "into account that China is coming closer to us", he said.
But the relationships between China and the various Nato members vary widely and individual members of Nato are divided over the group's strategy.
Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Photo: EPA alt=Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Photo: EPA
The friction between the fiercely pro-European Union powers of France and Germany, and the openly EU-sceptical Trump dominated last year's gathering. This year, again, Macron noted his scepticism about identifying China and Russia as enemies, while Trump pressed allies to increase defence spending. European nations failed to agree on specific Chinese polices. To take Beijing's controversial Belt and Road Initiative as an example, some Nato nations see it as an effort to improve trade connectivity by upgrading transport infrastructure across Eurasia; others see it as a veiled attempt by Beijing to flex its muscles. As a major member of Nato, the EU and the G7, Italy's endorsement of China's plan last year has angered Washington and alarmed many Nato allies, who fear joining the programme will give Beijing access to sensitive technologies and transport hubs.
Washington has pressured its European allies to exclude the Chinese technology firm Huawei from involvement in developing 5G networks, citing security concerns. Still, many member nations are undecided on the issue. However, leaders seem to have come to a consensus as they pledged, in the declaration following the summit, to ensure "the security of our communications, including 5G, recognising the need to rely on secure and resilient systems".
Security fears over Huawei have been a rallying call for Washington. Photo: Reuters alt=Security fears over Huawei have been a rallying call for Washington. Photo: Reuters
It might take time for Nato to develop a coordinated China policy as its members' strategic priorities and core national interests vary to some degree. While Washington's focus is on the Indo-Pacific, EU nations' concerns about China are more about perceived economic, technological and cybersecurity threats.
This is not the first time Nato has openly discussed China. However, previously its talks have focused on the implications of Chinese military activities in Asia, particularly about the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, and, to a more limited degree, its activities in the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere.
When Barack Obama announced his "pivot to Asia" strategy in 2012, under which two thirds of the US navy's assets were to be deployed to the Asia-Pacific region, many of Nato's European members saw Washington's strategic shift as the last nail in the coffin of the increasingly fractious group.
Now they feel China's direct threat at their doorstep as the People's Liberation Army increases its presence across the globe. The PLA has opened a base in Djibouti, and conducted joint exercises with Russia in the Mediterranean and Baltic Seas.
Now most of them share Washington's concerns about the rising threat. In the past couple of years, Washington and Brussels have moved closer in their strategy to deal with China. When the US identified China as a strategic competitor in its National Security Strategy last year, the 28-member European Commission, of which 22 nations are also Nato members, followed suit, with its "EU-China Strategic Outlook" plan simultaneously identifying China as "an economic competitor, and a systemic rival".
President Donald Trump leaves the White House on his way to a Nato meeting in Britain. Photo: The Washington Post alt=President Donald Trump leaves the White House on his way to a Nato meeting in Britain. Photo: The Washington Post
Nato's partner countries include most of the free democracies in Asia, such as Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, all of whom have long sought Nato's assistance to keep in check China's growing military clout. Nato is expected to upgrade its cooperation with both its Indo-Pacific partners and the Five Eyes intelligence alliance comprising the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Britain.
All this suggests there has been a landmark change in the group's strategy and that Nato no longer sees Russia as the dominant threat. The big message from the summit is that Nato leaders reaffirmed their "solemn commitment as enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty that an attack against one ally shall be considered an attack against us all".
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
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