NATO meeting hears scathing criticism of China

Jerome Hughes
Press TV, Brussels

Normally Russia attracts most of the harsh criticism at these NATO meetings, but perhaps because of Vladimir Putin's efforts to calm tensions in Syria, this time Moscow was spared. Instead US defense secretary Mark Esper set his sights on Beijing. 

The situation in Syria and NATO operations in Afghanistan were discussed at length by the ministers. So too was the ongoing pressure from Donald Trump for European NATO members and Canada to increase military spending within the 29-country alliance.

Campaign groups such as notonato.org say that far from boasting about spending billions more on its war capabilities, NATO should instead be ashamed of the vulgar amounts of money involved at a time when millions of people in many of the alliance's member states are living in poverty.

Anti-war campaigners say the EU's massive arms industry has too much political influence.

Peace activists and other campaigners are currently organizing big protests to coincide with a NATO summit scheduled for December in London.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk