NATO is 'sower of chaos and war': spokesman

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a "sower of chaos and war" which provokes bloc confrontation and creates division all around the world, a Chinese defense spokesperson said at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.

Zhang Xiaogang, the spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, slammed NATO's militaristic expansion when asked to comment on the recent Washington Summit Declaration. In it, NATO accused China of continuing to challenge its interests, security and values, and "having become a decisive enabler of Russia's war against Ukraine". NATO Secretary General said that NATO was to engage more closely with Indo-Pacific countries and that he supported more naval exercises between NATO Allies and Indo-Pacific partners.

"In recent years, NATO extended its ominous reach into the Asia-Pacific region, with China as its imagined antagonist. It has induced a number of regional countries to follow its lead, provoked bloc confrontation and created division. NATO is, indeed, a 'sowers of wars and chaos'," he said.

"From Ukraine to Afghanistan, from Iraq to Libya, it has brought war and disaster to these regions and their people. History has taught us that division and confrontation would find no support, and belligerency and expansion would work its own ruins," Zhang said.

"On the Ukraine issue, the Chinese side follows an objective and impartial position, and actively promotes peace talks, which has been widely recognized by the international community. In contrast, the U.S.-led NATO allies keep fueling the fire and profiteering from the war. NATO needs to reflect on itself, instead of deflecting blame onto China," he said.

The spokesperson emphasized that China has always been a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development, and a defender of the international order. The Chinese military remains a staunch force for global and regional peace and stability, he added.

He urged NATO not to interfere in China's internal affairs, not to challenge China's legitimate rights and interests, and not to smear China's domestic and foreign policies. Otherwise, it will only backfire, stressed the spokesman.

NATO is 'sower of chaos and war': spokesman

The China-Africa Industrial Cooperation Conference was held in Beijing on Saturday, drawing over 500 attendees, including Chinese and African business leaders and diplomats.

Themed "Sharing Development Opportunities of Modernization", the event sought to foster collaboration between China and Africa across various sectors following the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, the largest diplomatic event hosted by China in recent years, which concluded on Friday.

"Certainly, we expect a lot more cooperation, particularly in the areas of energy. We have a serious challenge in terms of energy in my country Zambia following the effects of climate change and the droughts. The electricity generation capacity has been wiped out, so we need to diversify our energy sources with the expansion in solar and wind," said Ivan Zyuulu, Zambian Ambassador to China.

Abubakar Hassan Abubakar, assistant minister at Kenya’s Ministry of Trade, Investments and Industry, emphasized the importance of China's vast market to Kenyan producers who would benefit from strengthening trade ties between China and Kenya.

"Of course, we are expecting more cooperation because, as I had said, China is the largest trading partner in Kenya and now, we want to position ourselves for Kenya to be the largest investment partner. We want them to invest in and produce either agricultural or industrial products and serve the rest of the world, but also serve China itself because you can see that President Xi Jinping is opening up this market, and we want to take advantage of that market," he said.

The Alliance of Chinese Business in Africa for Social Responsibilities (ACBASR) published a new Blue Book at the conference about the "One Hundred Enterprises and One Thousand Villages" initiative, estimated to have benefited 10,000 people in Africa by supporting work to protect the rights and interests of women and children and promote environmental sustainability and community development.

China-Africa Industrial Cooperation Conference held in Beijing