STOCKHOLM (AP) – Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said that the security situation in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region has become inseparable since Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, citing military cooperation between Russia and China in Asia.
Speaking at the Europe-Indo-Pacific Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Sweden, Foreign Minister Hayashi said Russia’s war with Ukraine was “shaking the foundations of the international order” and called for a joint response from the international community.
“Otherwise, similar challenges could arise in other regions, and the existing order that underpins our country’s peace and prosperity could be fundamentally overthrown,” Hayashi said.
Japan is adamant in its support of the Ukraine war, but China remains neutral, declaring a “borderless” relationship with Moscow and accusing the US and NATO of provoking the conflict. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited the Ukrainian capital Kiev in March on the sidelines of meetings in Moscow between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Lin accused Beijing of “continuing and intensifying unilateral attempts” to change the status quo by force in the East and South China Seas and stepping up military activities around Taiwan.
“In addition, China and Russia are stepping up military cooperation, including joint bomber flights and joint naval exercises near Japan,” Lin said.
China claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea and Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea, claiming it has the right to defend its sovereignty and development interests.
Lim also warned that North Korea has launched ballistic missiles “with unprecedented frequency and manner”, “escalating provocations” in the region.
He met with dozens of ministers from the European Union and the Indo-Pacific region in the northern part of the Swedish capital. China was not invited to the talks. “Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the security situation here in Europe and the security situation in the Pacific have become inseparable. That is why the European ministers and the Pacific ministers will discuss these issues together here in Stockholm. It is very important and very meaningful,” Lin told reporters upon his arrival.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Karl said the entire world was affected by the Ukraine war, leading to global challenges such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are all trying to approach this issue in our own way,” she said. “I think one of the lessons that countries like Pakistan have learned is that escalating conflict is never the solution. We want to be able to rebuild lives instead of destroying them.”
