Russia, China 'Deepen' Relations with Shared Anti-U.S. Goal: NATO Official

Russia and China are deepening practical cooperation despite Moscow's disastrous invasion of Ukraine with a shared goal of ejecting the U.S. from Europe and Asia, according to a senior NATO official.

James Appathurai, NATO's deputy assistant secretary general for emerging security challenges, told Newsweek on the sidelines of this weekend's Helsinki Security Forum that alliance members "shouldn't be naïve" about the expanding Moscow-Beijing partnership.

"China has been sticking politically with Russia throughout this process, amplifying their messaging, their disinformation—including on NATO, which China had not done in the past—in essence in partnership with Russia, which is supporting China's points of view when it comes to Asia," Appathurai said.

China has given President Vladimir Putin vital diplomatic and economic support by refusing to condemn Russia's latest invasion of Ukraine, though has so far not offered direct military assistance.

China's "pro-Russian neutrality"—as some commentators have dubbed the stance—has allowed institutions and companies to expand ties and trade with Russia; particularly energy purchases, as the West looks to wean itself off Moscow's fossil fuel exports.

Chinese diplomats have called on nations to respect "territorial integrity," but last week abstained on a United Nations Security Council draft resolution condemning Russia's illegal attempts to annex four occupied Ukrainian regions. Russia used its veto to block the resolution, on which India also abstained.

Appathurai said Beijing has made its intentions clear. "China has been relentlessly backing Russia in the UN system, including abstaining on votes on condemning the annexation of these four regions," he said.

"China has for decades talked about how much it supports sovereignty and territorial integrity. These were touchstones for China, but now they're not."

China is yet to send any weapons to support Russia in Ukraine, but Appathurai said the bilateral alignment has somewhat freed Moscow's hand.

"They have, through this agreement, removed any ambiguity about where Russia needs to put its forces," he explained. "So it has pulled forces out of the east and brought them to the west to use them to fight."

There appears little evidence that the Russia-China "friendship without limits" has, or will, be weakened by the war in Ukraine, Appathurai said.

"At just below the level of the leaders, they are continuing to deepen their relations with very practical agreements which enhance their cooperation. So my own feeling is they have long-term, common strategic interests, which are, in essence, about getting the U.S. out of Europe and getting the U.S. out of Asia."

"Maybe they've been spooked, or maybe they haven't. But what I don't see is any great shift in this strategic alignment at the practical level, and not very much at the political level either."

Newsweek has contacted the Russian and Chinese foreign ministries to request comment.