Ben Wallace told a small group of journalists on Wednesday, in response to a question about what Beijing, China would learn if the war concluded with Moscow in possession of 20 percent of Ukrainian land and Vladimir Putin still in power, that the West lacks resolve.
Ben Wallace, a cabinet minister, also discussed the significance of Turkey to the NATO alliance.
After the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan this summer, as US, UK, and other NATO forces departed and the Afghan government disintegrated, a similar conclusion was likely reached.
“Ukraine matters because China is watching,” Mr. Wallace said following a meeting of the defense ministers of northern and eastern European nations in Oslo, Norway.
“You are aware of the problems in Taiwan… Ultimately, [the battle in Ukraine] is about the West’s will to preserve its principles.
Therefore, all sorts of people who have a different worldview – or who are our opponents or competitors – will examine and test our resolve to see how far they can push it and engage us accordingly.
President Xi Jinping of China will already be aware of how the Joined Kingdom, the United States, and other western allies have united to respond to President Vladimir Putin’s conflict with unprecedented sanctions, while also providing Ukraine with increasingly dangerous weapons.
Mr. Wallace stated, “If Russia intended to build a picture of divisions and failures, it has failed, and China will take note.”
Analysts believe Beijing will draw lessons from the West’s response to Russia’s war as it mulls the use of military force to impose control over Taiwan.
The British defense secretary stated that he did not like to speculate on China’s territorial policy. He then stated: “The British perspective is that tensions between China and Taiwan must be resolved diplomatically and amicably.
“Therefore, the Hong Kong issues are troubling for us since the ‘one country, two systems’ principle has been discarded, which is not good news for Taiwan.”
Mr. Wallace was alluding to Beijing’s decision to strip Hong Kong, a former British colony, of essential rights and liberties, which the United Kingdom considers a violation of obligations China made with the United Kingdom.
The remarks were made as news broke that President Xi had spoken with Vladimir Putin by telephone. As a result of their shared goals, the authoritarian leaders have gotten closer, yet analysts assert there is a lack of mutual trust.
A few weeks before the Russian invasion, the two leaders issued an uncommon joint statement outlining their vision for a “new era” in international affairs.
In the phone discussion on Wednesday, President Xi noted that despite global turbulence and change, China-Russia ties have maintained a positive development momentum since the beginning of the year.
The defense secretary made these statements following a meeting with his counterparts from the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) on Tuesday and Wednesday morning, before a summit of NATO defense ministers in Brussels on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday.
Sweden and Finland, both members of JEF, have opted to forsake their historic neutrality and join NATO in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Mr. Wallace expressed hope that opposition to this move by a single NATO ally, Turkey, would be lifted in time for the formal accession process to be initiated by the 30-member alliance at the end of June when heads of state and government assemble for a historic summit.
The defense secretary stated that he would visit Turkey the next week to listen to Ankara’s concerns and attempt to address them.
“Turkey is a crucial strategic ally for the United Kingdom and Europe. They are the bridge, and woe to anyone who forgets Turkey’s significance.”
