China calls Moscow alliance 'stability anchor'
BEIJING: China says the Russia-friendly states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) must be an 'anchor of stability' in times of international unrest.
Defence Minister Dong Jun made the comments at a meeting with his counterparts from the SCO countries in the coastal city of Qingdao in eastern China. The People's Republic is prepared to resolutely defend international justice together with these states, he said. The meeting in Qingdao took place almost simultaneously with the Nato summit in the Dutch city of The Hague. At the summit in the Netherlands on Wednesday the Nato countries committed themselves to investing 5 per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP) in defence and security every year from 2035 at the latest - more than at any time since the Cold War. China's Foreign Ministry sharply criticised the decision. Nato is increasing international tensions and slandering China's military build-up as a pretext to expand its borders and advance eastward and into the Pacific region, spokesman Guo Jiakun said in Beijing. If Nato cares about security in Europe and the world, it should stop fuelling confrontation, he added. Russia, China and Central Asian states such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan initially founded the SCO in 2001 to combat terrorism and promote economic cooperation. It now comprises 10 countries,including Iran, India, Pakistan and Belarus. Meanwhile, the defence ministers meeting were unable to adopt a joint statement at the end of their talks due to a lack of consensus on referring to "terrorism", the Indian foreign ministry said on Thursday. SCO is a 10-nation Eurasian security and political grouping whose members include China, Russia, India, Pakistan, and Iran. Their defence ministers' meeting was held as a precursor to the annual summit of its leaders set for the autumn. "Certain members, member countries, could not reach consensus on certain issues and hence the document could not be finalised on our side," Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters at a weekly media briefing. — Agencies
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Observer
14 hours ago
- Observer
China calls Moscow alliance 'stability anchor'
BEIJING: China says the Russia-friendly states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) must be an 'anchor of stability' in times of international unrest. Defence Minister Dong Jun made the comments at a meeting with his counterparts from the SCO countries in the coastal city of Qingdao in eastern China. The People's Republic is prepared to resolutely defend international justice together with these states, he said. The meeting in Qingdao took place almost simultaneously with the Nato summit in the Dutch city of The Hague. At the summit in the Netherlands on Wednesday the Nato countries committed themselves to investing 5 per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP) in defence and security every year from 2035 at the latest - more than at any time since the Cold War. China's Foreign Ministry sharply criticised the decision. Nato is increasing international tensions and slandering China's military build-up as a pretext to expand its borders and advance eastward and into the Pacific region, spokesman Guo Jiakun said in Beijing. If Nato cares about security in Europe and the world, it should stop fuelling confrontation, he added. Russia, China and Central Asian states such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan initially founded the SCO in 2001 to combat terrorism and promote economic cooperation. It now comprises 10 countries,including Iran, India, Pakistan and Belarus. Meanwhile, the defence ministers meeting were unable to adopt a joint statement at the end of their talks due to a lack of consensus on referring to "terrorism", the Indian foreign ministry said on Thursday. SCO is a 10-nation Eurasian security and political grouping whose members include China, Russia, India, Pakistan, and Iran. Their defence ministers' meeting was held as a precursor to the annual summit of its leaders set for the autumn. "Certain members, member countries, could not reach consensus on certain issues and hence the document could not be finalised on our side," Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters at a weekly media briefing. — Agencies
Times of Oman
18 hours ago
- Times of Oman
Shashi Tharoor meets Deputy Chairman of Russian Federation Council in Moscow
Moscow: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who is on a visit to Russia, met several top Russian leaders, including the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Federation Council (the Upper House) and also interacted with students. The Congress MP took to the social media platform X to share about his meeting with the Russian lawmaker. "An excellent and remarkably candid discussion with Konstantin Iosifovich Kosachev, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council (the Upper House). Ranged from #OperationSindoor to regional geopolitics and relations between our Parliaments. A first-rate exchange of views," Tharoor posted. Shashi also interacted with Russian students who are studying about India and Indian students in Russia. In another post on X, Tharoor wrote, "Enjoyed a ninety-minute interaction with some 150 Russians studying about India and Indian students in Russia. Their questions ranged from India-Pakistan relations to global neocolonialism and the risk of militarisation of space. A remarkable discussion which was recorded by @RT_com for likely broadcast in a couple of months. And when it concluded, i was gratified to find i had readers and fans even in Moscow! (The last pic features the Russian Edition of #TheFiveDollarSmile -- but the reader's smile is worth a lot more!)" Earlier on Wednesday, Tharoor met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and several other Russian lawmakers. Tharoor posted on X, "Good to catch up with old friend Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the #PrimakovReadings in Moscow." He further said, "Enjoyed catching up with old friend Andrey Denisov, former Russian Ambassador to the @UN and to China , and now the First Deputy Chair of the Committee on International Affairs of the Russian Federation Council."
Times of Oman
a day ago
- Times of Oman
NATO members pledge 5% GDP on defence spending by 2035
The Hague: The member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) have committed to ramping up their defence spending, affirming an "ironclad commitment" for their collective defence by investing 5 per cent of their country's GDP annually on "core defence requirements" as well as defence- and security-related sectors by 2035 as outlined in The Hague Summit Declaration. As per the declaration, released on Wednesday following the summit, the 32 Heads of State and Government of the military alliance resolved to bolster its military capabilities, particularly the long-term threat posed by Russia and the persistent challenge of terrorism, while reaffirming the transatlantic bond and collective defence principles. "We the Heads of State and Government of the North Atlantic Alliance, have gathered in The Hague to reaffirm our commitment to NATO, the strongest Alliance in history, and to the transatlantic bond. We reaffirm our ironclad commitment to collective defence as enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty - that an attack on one is an attack on all. We remain united and steadfast in our resolve to protect our one billion citizens, defend the Alliance, and safeguard our freedom and democracy," the declaration stated. "United in the face of profound security threats and challenges, in particular the long-term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security and the persistent threat of terrorism, Allies commit to invest 5 per cent of GDP annually on core defence requirements as well as defence-and security-related spending by 2035 to ensure our individual and collective obligations, in accordance with Article 3 of the Washington Treaty," it added. The declaration further breaks down the 5 per cent commitment into two essential categories, with at least 3.5 per cent of GDP allocated to core defence requirements and meeting NATO Capability Targets, with annual plans submitted to show a credible, incremental path to this goal. The remaining up to 1.5 per cent will be directed towards protecting critical infrastructure, defending networks, ensuring civil preparedness and resilience, unleashing innovation, and strengthening the defence industrial base, with a review of the trajectory and balance of this spending scheduled for 2029. "Allies agree that this 5% commitment will comprise two essential categories of defence investment. Allies will allocate at least 3.5% of GDP annually based on the agreed definition of NATO defence expenditure by 2035 to resource core defence requirements and to meet the NATO Capability Targets. Allies agree to submit annual plans showing a credible, incremental path to reach this goal. And Allies will account for up to 1.5% of GDP annually to inter alia protect our critical infrastructure, defend our networks, ensure our civil preparedness and resilience, unleash innovation, and strengthen our defence industrial base. The trajectory and balance of spending under this plan will be reviewed in 2029, in light of the strategic environment and updated Capability Targets," the declaration specified. However, the 5 per cent GDP commitment, a significant increase from the previous 2 per cent target, hasn't aligned with all the members of the organisation. Spain has openly stated it won't be able to meet the proposed 5 per cent defence spending target, with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez affirming that his government will adhere to the existing 2 per cent benchmark, which was originally established after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, as reported by Al Jazeera. Spain currently ranks as the NATO member with the lowest defence spending, with just 1.24 per cent of its GDP allocated to defence in 2024, placing it among the nine countries that failed to reach the 2 per cent target, as per Al Jazeera.
