Russia, China to Keep Explaining Danger of NATO Presence to Asia-Pacific, Ambassador Says

BEIJING (Sputnik) - Russia and China will keep explaining to all Asia-Pacific countries the dangers and threats posed by NATO's presence in the region, and continue to build up military cooperation with partner states, Russian Ambassador to Beijing Igor Morgulov said on Saturday.

"There is a need to explain to all those countries of the region, where Russia has many like-minded people, the dangers and threats posed by NATO's presence in the Asia-Pacific region. We will continue the relevant work together with our Chinese friends," Morgulov told the Chinese broadcaster.

Moscow and Beijing must also continue their efforts to preserve the region's post-Cold War security structure, Morgulov said, when asked how the two partner countries could counter NATO's deployment in the Indo-Pacific region.

"For those who do not understand, we will respond by building up military-technical cooperation with our like-minded states in the region, including China," the ambassador told the broadcaster.

Morgulov also said that the West sought to undermine the existing structure of security and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region by offering instead a new system based on NATO.

"I have repeatedly expressed bewilderment why NATO is rushing into the Asia-Pacific region. At the Madrid summit in June last year, the North Atlantic Alliance officially announced that its sphere of responsibility was becoming global at that moment. This raises a lot of questions for us," Morgulov added.

The Russian diplomat said in conclusion that he saw no positive aspects of the fact that NATO could appear in the region.