Photo/Illutration Mark Rutte, secretary-general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, during an interview in Tokyo on April 9 (The Asahi Shimbun)

Europe and Asia continue to be inseparable in national security, the chief of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization said, citing the concerning roles China and North Korea are playing in Russia’s war in Ukraine.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte described China as “the key enabler of the Russian war effort,” saying that the country is circumventing sanctions against Moscow and providing equipment that can be diverted to military use.

“(We) should not be naive about China,” Rutte told The Asahi Shimbun in an interview in Tokyo on April 9, saying that Beijing will increase its nuclear warheads to 1,000 by 2030 and it already deploys more warships in Asia than the United States.

Rutte, who was visiting Japan for the first time after becoming the NATO chief in October, said North Korea is receiving innovative military technologies from Russia in exchange for dispatching soldiers to its war against Ukraine.

The cooperation between the two countries poses a “direct threat” not only to Japan and South Korea but also to the United States and Europe, said Rutte, a former Dutch prime minister for 14 years.

“We cannot see these two theaters as separate,” he said, referring to the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific. “They are connected.”

Still, Rutte effectively ruled out the possibility of NATO becoming involved in a military contingency in Asia, such as a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.

“This is not about NATO becoming active in the Indo-Pacific. We will be active with the Indo-Pacific,” he said. “This is not about NATO extending its Article Five commitment into the Indo-Pacific.”

Rutte also said NATO and Japan can further expand cooperation in the defense industry, space technologies and joint exercises, touching on the next-generation fighter jet being developed by Japan, Britain and Italy.

Rutte, who met with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba the same day, welcomed Japan’s willingness to participate in the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), headquartered in Germany.

The support organization, which started operations in September, provides weapons to Ukraine and offers military training to its soldiers.

“A strong NATO benefits Japan as well,” said the joint statement released after the meeting.

In a separate remark, Ishiba said the need for security cooperation among NATO and Indo-Pacific partners, including Japan, has increased even further.

Rutte said NATO and Japan are supporting Ukraine because the outcome of the military conflict is important to the stability of the world.

Japan expects to strengthen ties with NATO by taking part in the NSATU, which would demonstrate its willingness to support Ukraine not only economically but also in security as well.

“We want to show (our stance) not only by word but also by action,” a Foreign Ministry official said.

The Defense Ministry said it will consider dispatching Self-Defense Force members to the support organization but they will not engage in combat.

Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said Japan also hopes to “learn lessons from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine” through the NSATU.

NATO, to which Russia poses the largest military threat, has become increasingly concerned about Moscow’s deepening cooperation with China and North Korea.

In recent years, NATO has been strengthening collaboration with Japan, which faces increasing challenges from China and North Korea in the Indo-Pacific.

(This article was compiled from reports by Atsushi Okudera, a senior staff writer, Taro Ono and Mizuki Sato.)