Russia Would Keep Europe ‘Busy’ to Help China’s Invasion of Taiwan, NATO Leader Warns

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the alliance would not ‘opt out’ in the event of a Chinese attack on Taiwan.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte holds a pre-summit press conference at the World Forum in The Hague, Netherlands, on June 23, 2025. Omar Havana/Getty Images

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has expressed concerns that Russia would keep Europe “busy” in a bid to support communist China’s war against Taiwan.

Speaking at a press conference on June 23 ahead of a NATO summit in the Hague, Netherlands, Rutte said NATO has close ties with several Indo-Pacific partners, namely Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea, and they all share the concern about the Chinese regime’s “massive military build-up.”

Rutte noted that a few years ago, there weren’t any Chinese enterprises among the world’s top 10 defense companies, but now, there are three to five.

“Of course, they don’t do this only because they want to have nice parades in Beijing,” Rutte said. “And we are all very worried, of course, about the situation in Taiwan.”

When asked about a scenario in which the United States comes to Taiwan’s aid after the island is attacked by China, Rutte said that there would be “no doubt” that Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping would call on his “junior partner,” Russian President Vladimir Putin, for assistance.

Putin “will keep us busy here [in Europe],” Rutte said, without elaborating.

In such a scenario, Rutte said, NATO would not “opt out” as an alliance.

“That is one of the reasons why we have to stand ready, and we cannot be naive. We have to be clear on this, and that is why that extra defence spending is so important,” Rutte said, referring to a possible new baseline of NATO members each spending at least 5 percent of their gross domestic product on defense.

“That is why NATO does not have, as an alliance, opt-out, side deals, etc., because we all have to chip in.”

The Chinese Communist Party views Taiwan as one of its provinces and aims to seize the island, despite never having governed it. Taiwan is a de facto independent nation with its own democratically elected government, military, constitution, and currency.

The United States is Taiwan’s biggest arms supplier, even though the two sides do not have formal diplomatic ties.

In May, during a speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned about the consequences of a Chinese attack on Taiwan and gave a timetable for when that might happen.

“It’s public that Xi has ordered his military to be capable of invading Taiwan by 2027,” Hegeseth said at the time. “Any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world.”

Xi and Putin announced their “no limits” partnership in February 2022, just weeks before Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. The two leaders have repeatedly affirmed their partnership since then.

The partnership has included Moscow’s taking Beijing’s stance on Taiwan, calling the self-governing island an “inalienable part of China,” according to a joint statement.

In early May, Xi and Putin met in the Kremlin to further strengthen the collaboration between the two neighboring countries. The trip marked Xi’s 11th visit to Russia since coming to power in 2013.

Rutte, who served as the prime minister of the Netherlands for nearly 14 years from 2010 to 2024, took office as the NATO secretary-general in October last year, succeeding Jens Stoltenberg.

In a speech in December 2024, Rutte said that “China is bullying Taiwan.” He also warned that if Putin “comes out on top” of any negotiations with Ukraine, Xi would be watching and could potentially start to “nibble Taiwan.”

In response, Taiwan’s foreign ministry said Rutte’s 2024 speech “was especially meaningful at a time when authoritarian regimes are expanding their ambitions,” according to a statement at the time.

Taiwan “will continue to work with such like-minded partners as the G7 and NATO in order to jointly safeguard peace, stability, and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait and the wider region,” the ministry added.