NATO chief says China military expansion 'staggering'

NATO chief warns of China's "staggering" military expansion during visit to Japan, emphasizing need for stronger cooperation.

China's expansion of its armed forces is "staggering", NATO's chief said on a visit to Japan beginning on Tuesday (April 8, 2025) aimed at "projecting" the alliance's power in the Asia-Pacific region.

"Let us not be naive about China," Secretary General Mark Rutte told the Japan Times.

"The build-up of their armed forces and investments in their defence industry, and in their defence capabilities, is staggering," Mr. Rutte said in the interview published on Monday (April 7).

The comment came as he visited the Yokosuka naval base and a Japanese defence contractor on Tuesday before meeting Defence Minister Gen Nakatani to call for further cooperation.

"NATO and Japan share the same values and we face many of the same challenges," Mr. Rutte told Mr. Nakatani.

"China, North Korea and Russia are stepping up their military exercises and their cooperation, undermining global stability, and that means what happens in the Euro-Atlantic matters for the Indo-Pacific and vice versa.

"A stronger Japan-NATO cooperation is necessary in an increasingly dangerous world," he said.