MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/. Western countries should not underestimate the resolve by Russia and China to defend their national interests, even in the security sphere, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with the International Affairs journal on Friday.
"We are working calmly and confidently. Here, perhaps, is one recommendation for [our] colleagues in the West: do not underestimate the resolve by Moscow and Beijing to defend their national interests, including in the security sphere," the senior Russian diplomat stressed.
As Ryabkov emphasized, the issue of how Russia and China will further defend their national interests - interacting with each other, separately or in coordination - "does not concern the Western group." "They tell us: the issue of [eastward] expansion concerns only NATO and those who wish to join it. And we tell NATO members and those who wish to join it: what will develop later between Moscow and Beijing does not concern you," the high-ranking Russian diplomat said.
Moscow is grateful to Beijing for its "articulated and clear-cut" attitude to Russia’s proposals to the United States and NATO on security guarantees, Ryabkov said.
"I believe that [our] colleagues from the People’s Republic of China understand perfectly that what we’re talking about here largely concerns such a geopolitical crisis to a considerable extent," the senior Russian diplomat went on to say. "We are interacting with China in various fields in the closest way. We have a unique relationship - a comprehensive strategic partnership in the literal sense of every word that this phrase implies," Ryabkov insisted.
Russia continues to deepen relations with Beijing in various areas and both countries do not underestimate the risks being created by "the Western group," he pointed out. "Some members of this group are waiting for ‘the attack!’ command while others are themselves pulling on the leash. We will wait and see how things will develop," the senior Russian diplomat said.