China issues US with ‘containment’ warning
Beijing has condemned US attempts to “contain and suppress” China and Russia, saying they would not succeed, after it was reported that the Biden administration had described China in its new National Defense Strategy as its “most consequential strategic competitor.”
President Joe Biden briefed members of Congress on the classified version of the new strategy on Monday, which comes as Washington looks to increase its defense budget to $773 billion. Responding to a summary of the strategy documents, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said they were “full of Cold War and bloc confrontation mentality.”
Wang called on Washington to “correct the practice of establishing imaginary enemies, ignoring other countries’ legitimate security concerns, and stoking bloc confrontation.” “China and Russia are two major countries. The US attempt to contain and suppress them will not succeed,” he said.
The summary reportedly reveals that the US Defense Department has classified China as the US’ “most consequential strategic competitor” amid growing tensions in the Indo-Pacific region. It states that it will “act urgently to sustain and strengthen deterrence” so as to defend the US from the “growing multi-domain threat” posed by Beijing.
Wang urged Washington to “earnestly implement” Biden’s assertions that the US was not seeking a new Cold War with China, and suggested their two nations “find the right way to get along with each other.”
The new National Defense Strategy includes the Nuclear Posture Review and Missile Defense Review, which reportedly list US priorities as deterring attacks not only against the homeland, but also against its allies and partners.
