The NATO Summit Meeting was held in Vilnius, Lithuania, in July, agreeing on accelerating military assistance to Ukraine. The leadership of the alliance invited Japan, Republic of Korea, Australia and New Zealand, following the last meeting in June 2022. The event has manifested to beleaguer China with a leading role bestowed to Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.
JAPAN PLAYS PRINCIPAL ROLE IN ENCLOSING CHINA
The communique of 2023 NATO Summit Meeting has sought ‘a complete and unconditional withdrawal of the Russian military force’. NATO is ‘determined not to go to ceasefire before triumph’ and is to provide weapons in an accelerated manner so that ‘the assistance package should be upgraded to a multiyear program’.
NATO membership of Ukraine – after the war
Actually, France expressed to deliver long-range missiles, while Germany sent patriot missiles and Leopard I tanks. Meanwhile the United States had pledged to distribute cluster munitions before the meeting.
Ukraine asked for accession to the alliance, but in order to evade a war with Russia the NATO leadership agreed to create a new ‘NATO-Ukraine Council for dialogue between the country and Allies on the equal term’. The alliance arranged to help with ‘contemporary military equipment in the domains of land, air and sea’ and encourage military industries of the nation. The decision means an optimum choice to the bid for membership to wait until the war ends. The stance will prolong the military conflict.
Closer cooperation with Japan’s Self Defense Forces
To the US a real ‘threat’ is China. The NATO, though it commits in the Euro-Atlantic areas, invited Japan and other Pacific nations last year with an intention to extend the military bloc to the Asia and Pacific region.
The said communique also specifies that ‘ambitions and coercive policies of China challenge the interests, security and values of the alliance’. Premier Kishida delivered a speech, saying that ‘security in Europe and security in the Info-Pacific region are inseparable. The aggression to Ukraine is not a problem limited to Europe. I welcome the European allies’ closer commitments in the affairs of Indo-Pacific region’.
The prime minister has agreed on the new partnership, the Partnership Program, between the NATO and Japan. It spans four years beginning in 2023 in broader spheres, focusing on countermeasures to the emerging and disruptive technologies, including cyber defense policies and AI, and security in the outer space.
The program is regarded as ‘a roadmap to upgrading the mutual assistance readiness viable even in an emergency’; in its essence, it will seek common standards in equipment and technologies to strengthen interoperability between the SDF and the NATO troops. Assuming a ‘contingency around Taiwan’, the SDF will get united militarily with NATO.
Euro-Members do not have same stance toward China
Different from the posture toward Russia, NATO members do not share the identical attitude as far as China is concerned. As is seen in the fact that President Macron opposes the opening of a NATO office in Tokyo, the Atlantic members have not yet reached an accord.
China has expressed a harsh criticism to the summit meeting, saying that ‘it is full of prejudices based on logics and ideologies of the Cold War era. China stringently denounces the leaders’ meeting. It is NATO that complicates the Asia-Pacific region’.
リトアニアの首都ビリニュスで７月に開かれたＮＡＴＯ首脳会議は、ウクライナ戦争への軍事支援を加速。昨年６月に続き日豪韓ＮＺを招き、岸田首相を推進役に対中包囲網を具体化した。
首脳会議の「共同声明」は、「ロシアの完全で無条件の撤退」を求めた。「勝つまで停戦しない」以上、「支援プログラムを複数年のものに発展させ」、武器援助をさらに加速する。
戦争終了後に加盟
事実、仏は長距離ミサイル、独もパトリオットミサイル、戦車レオパルドⅠなどの提供を表明した。米は首脳会談の前にクラスター爆弾の提供を表明した。
ウクライナはＮＡＴＯ加盟を求めたが、ＮＡＴＯとロシアの戦争になるため「ウクライナが加盟国と対等に対話するための理事会」を設置し、「陸海空の領域で現代的な軍事装備」と「ウクライナの防衛産業の発展」を支援することで合意した。戦争終了後の加盟を前提にしたギリギリの選択だ。こうした態度は、戦争をいっそう長引かせるであろう。
自衛隊と連携強化
米国にとって真の「脅威」は中国だ。「北大西洋条約機構」なのに昨年から日本などを招しょうへい聘したのは、軍事同盟をアジア・太平洋にまで拡大するためだ。
「共同声明」は「中国の野心と威圧的政策はＮＡＴＯの利益や安全・価値観への挑戦だ」とした。岸田首相は「欧州とインド・太平洋の安全保障は不可分だ。ウクライナ侵略は欧州だけの問題ではない。欧州の同志国でもインド太平洋への関与が高まっていることを歓迎する」と演説した。
そして日本とＮＡＴＯの新たな「パートナーシップ計画」に合意。23年から４年間が対象で、サイバー防衛対策、ＡＩなど新興破壊技術対策、宇宙安全保障など広範囲にわたる。
「有事でも相互支援が可能な関係へ格上げするための工程表」とも言われ、自衛隊とＮＡＴＯの部隊の相互運用性を高めるために装備や技術の共通性を高めることが柱。「台湾有事」を想定し、ＮＡＴＯとの軍事的な一体化をめざす。
対中ではそろわず
ただ、対ロ関係と異なり対中関係ではＮＡＴＯの足並みはそろっていない。マクロン仏大統領がＮＡＴＯ東京事務所開設には異を唱え、合意できていない。
中国は首脳会議に対し、「冷戦時代の考え方とイデオロギー的な偏見に満ちていて、断固として反対する。アジア太平洋を混乱させているのはＮＡＴＯだ」と強く批判した。
英訳版↓
No. 1317 NATO Summit Meeting
The NATO Summit Meeting was held in Vilnius, Lithuania, in July, agreeing on accelerating military assistance to Ukraine. The leadership of the alliance invited Japan, Republic of Korea, Australia and New Zealand, following the last meeting in June 2022. The event has manifested to beleaguer China with a leading role bestowed to Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.
JAPAN PLAYS PRINCIPAL ROLE IN ENCLOSING CHINA
The communique of 2023 NATO Summit Meeting has sought ‘a complete and unconditional withdrawal of the Russian military force’. NATO is ‘determined not to go to ceasefire before triumph’ and is to provide weapons in an accelerated manner so that ‘the assistance package should be upgraded to a multiyear program’.
NATO membership of Ukraine – after the war
Actually, France expressed to deliver long-range missiles, while Germany sent patriot missiles and Leopard I tanks. Meanwhile the United States had pledged to distribute cluster munitions before the meeting.
Ukraine asked for accession to the alliance, but in order to evade a war with Russia the NATO leadership agreed to create a new ‘NATO-Ukraine Council for dialogue between the country and Allies on the equal term’. The alliance arranged to help with ‘contemporary military equipment in the domains of land, air and sea’ and encourage military industries of the nation. The decision means an optimum choice to the bid for membership to wait until the war ends. The stance will prolong the military conflict.
Closer cooperation with Japan’s Self Defense Forces
To the US a real ‘threat’ is China. The NATO, though it commits in the Euro-Atlantic areas, invited Japan and other Pacific nations last year with an intention to extend the military bloc to the Asia and Pacific region.
The said communique also specifies that ‘ambitions and coercive policies of China challenge the interests, security and values of the alliance’. Premier Kishida delivered a speech, saying that ‘security in Europe and security in the Info-Pacific region are inseparable. The aggression to Ukraine is not a problem limited to Europe. I welcome the European allies’ closer commitments in the affairs of Indo-Pacific region’.
The prime minister has agreed on the new partnership, the Partnership Program, between the NATO and Japan. It spans four years beginning in 2023 in broader spheres, focusing on countermeasures to the emerging and disruptive technologies, including cyber defense policies and AI, and security in the outer space.
The program is regarded as ‘a roadmap to upgrading the mutual assistance readiness viable even in an emergency’; in its essence, it will seek common standards in equipment and technologies to strengthen interoperability between the SDF and the NATO troops. Assuming a ‘contingency around Taiwan’, the SDF will get united militarily with NATO.
Euro-Members do not have same stance toward China
Different from the posture toward Russia, NATO members do not share the identical attitude as far as China is concerned. As is seen in the fact that President Macron opposes the opening of a NATO office in Tokyo, the Atlantic members have not yet reached an accord.
China has expressed a harsh criticism to the summit meeting, saying that ‘it is full of prejudices based on logics and ideologies of the Cold War era. China stringently denounces the leaders’ meeting. It is NATO that complicates the Asia-Pacific region’.
August 2, 2023