My Take | Nato is set to become Asia’s powder keg problem
- The eastward expansion of the Western military alliance in Europe helped create the situation in Ukraine today. Now it wants carte blanche for global operations because of China – a disaster waiting to happen in Asia
Nato needs to be renamed. It should soon be called the North Atlantic and Pacific Treaty Organization. After all, every great organisation needs a name that is fit for purpose, and Nato has been having an identity crisis for almost three decades now. Where would it be without Russia, and now China?
By the end of its annual summit this week, the world’s most formidable military grouping will adopt a new strategic doctrine against China. Current and former bosses of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have been preparing the public for the radical shift.
Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg last week declared: “China is openly contesting the rules-based international order.”
James Stavridis, former supreme allied commander of Nato who contributed to the formulation of the last major “strategic concept” or doctrine in 2010, said China would be cited in the new strategic overhaul.
He wrote in Bloomberg: “Unlike in 2010, this long-term plan will describe China as a strategic competitor. [Nato] must be capable of addressing concerns in cyberspace, human rights and territorial claims in the South China Sea – including consideration of Nato undertaking freedom of navigation patrols.