NATO: EXPANSION INTO ASIA DOES NOT PROMISE AN EASY LIFE

Although NATO is formally limited to the Euro-Atlantic region, the tentacles of this aggressive alliance also extend to the Middle East , Africa and the Pacific region. The anniversary NATO summit in the United States showed that cooperation with Washington’s satellites will take place not only through AUKUS and QUAD, but also through the headquarters in Brussels. The goal is obvious – to incite Asian partners against Russia, China and the DPRK. For now, through various cooperation projects and the creation of provocations. Potentially – as cannon fodder in a possible conflict.

Already on the first day of the NATO summit, it became known that the alliance and US partners in the Indo-Pacific region — Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand (leaders of all four countries were present at the summit) — will launch four new joint projects to deepen cooperation. This was announced by US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan at a meeting of defense industry representatives on the first day of the NATO summit in Washington. The projects will focus on Ukraine, artificial intelligence, disinformation and cybersecurity.

“Each initiative is different, but the core goal is the same: to leverage the unique strengths of high-performing democracies to address shared global challenges,” he said , and “what happens in Europe affects the Indo-Pacific and what happens in the Indo-Pacific affects Europe.”

At the same forum, US Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said that “the transatlantic defense industrial base is at a turning point” and that cooperation with Indo-Pacific partners such as Australia, Japan and South Korea on joint production of weapons and joint maintenance of ships and aircraft would benefit everyone.

Clearly, this should also be seen as sending weapons and ammunition to the Kyiv regime, which the West continues to use against Russia.

The summit declaration stated in one of its points that “the Indo-Pacific region is important to NATO because developments in the region directly impact Euro-Atlantic security. We welcome the continued contribution of our Asia-Pacific partners to Euro-Atlantic security. We are strengthening dialogue to address interregional challenges and expanding our practical cooperation…”.

It should be noted that Japan’s interaction with NATO has already become a routine phenomenon, and after the signing of new agreements between Russia and the DPRK, all sorts of phobias have noticeably increased in Tokyo.

Last year, Japan expanded its partnership with NATO by signing a tailored partnership program. This document emphasizes that Japan is a natural partner of NATO and that both NATO and Japan agree to expand security cooperation in all areas of warfare. In addition to NATO, Japan is also actively negotiating and signing new Mutual Access Agreements (MAAs) in the area of ​​military training and capacity building with NATO member countries. Japan signed an MAA with the United Kingdom in early 2023. Negotiations are currently underway to conclude an MAA with France. Japan and Italy also have an Action Plan 2027, which includes various economic and defense issues, as Italy is also a key partner of Japan in the development of the next-generation fighter.

Although the US notes that “there are limits to Japan’s partnership with NATO. The organization cannot come to Japan’s defense even if it comes into conflict with Russia, China or North Korea. But NATO member states, especially the US, could certainly provide military and non-military support to Japan if necessary.”

South Korea is also limited in its ability to cooperate with NATO and its members. However, there are a number of opportunities for trilateral cooperation between the United States, Japan, and South Korea.

Japan is already planning joint military exercises with NATO forces Germany and Spain in July. They will take place on Hokkaido, south of the Kuril Islands. Russia has already protested the upcoming exercises and announced adequate countermeasures.

It was also noted that in less than six months, Japan has conducted about 30 such maneuvers with 14 countries. This indicates Tokyo’s clear desire to escalate.

The same cannot be said, for example, about the Philippines, which has begun to distance itself from interaction with the United States. The day before, the country’s military announced that it would remove American medium-range missile systems. In June 2024, the Chinese Defense Minister warned that the deployment of such weapons in the region was detrimental to the security regime. Although the Philippines has been closely interacting with Washington lately, it seems that they have begun to understand that the Yankees simply want to use them against China. And Manila has begun to think more rationally, considering the consequences.

As for Australia and New Zealand, as Anglo-Saxon entities, these two countries have long followed in the wake of the United States, also being part of the Five Eyes intelligence community along with Canada and Britain.

On the final day of the summit, July 11, all Asian heads of state met with NATO leadership, where Stoltenberg complimented each one individually and pointed to their regional opponents in China, North Korea, Russia and even Iran, emphasizing the importance of future joint work.

As for the areas that will intersect in the area of ​​interaction with Washington’s Asian agents, it should be noted that at the NATO summit they also agreed to open a new integrated cyber defense center, agreed on a defense industry development plan, and adopted an updated strategy on artificial intelligence.

NATO countries are also reportedly planning to develop the first-ever commercial space strategy to accelerate the adoption of new technologies in their armed forces, based in part on recommendations prepared by a government-industry working group sponsored by NATO and the US Chamber of Commerce.

It is significant that on the eve of the NATO summit on July 4, the alliance’s new member Sweden adopted the first-ever military space strategy. Given these factors, it is likely that work in the space direction, albeit with commercial cover, was previously agreed upon among the members of the military bloc.

All these signals cannot but cause concern not only for Russia, as well as China, North Korea and Iran, but also for the overwhelming majority of countries and their citizens. After all, the lessons of history have shown that NATO is an aggressive military bloc that does not care about the norms of international law (the experience of Yugoslavia), and its intervention extends far beyond the Atlantic (the experience of Libya). And since the world economic center has already shifted to Asia, NATO’s interest in this region does not bode well. And only a powerful counter-alliance, such as the SCO and other less formal associations, can help contain their insinuations.

P.S. While Washington was discussing the future of Ukraine and the interrelated issues of “security,” Russian troops liberated several more settlements in Donbass, previously controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.