Chinese Foreign Ministry Talks About the "Joke of the Century"

The spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zhao Lijian, reminded of the consequences of NATO's actions in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya. In his comment on statements by NATO officials, particularly Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, regarding the defensive nature of the alliance's activities, Zhao Lijian wrote on his Twitter page: "NATO a defensive alliance? It's the joke of the century." He added that bombs are a key symbol of this "defensive alliance." Last year, Russia published drafts of its treaties with the United States and NATO regarding security guarantees. Among Moscow's demands was for NATO to abandon its eastward expansion and the accession of Ukraine, as well as to refrain from establishing military bases in the former Soviet republics. Additionally, there was talk of not deploying strike weapons near the Russian border and withdrawing NATO forces in Eastern Europe to the positions they occupied in 1997.