The Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg warned that a Russian victory in Ukraine would set a precedent for China to invade Taiwan amid US reports that Beijing is backing Putin in the Ukrainian war.

Jens Stoltenberg told Sweden’s Expressen on Wednesday that China could be emboldened to resort to seizing Taiwan by force if Putin’s invasion succeeds, arguing that “what is happening in Europe today, it can happen in Asia tomorrow.”

“The outcome of the war in Ukraine affects the conclusions that will be drawn in Beijing. This includes Taiwan,” he clarified.

“If Putin gets what he wants with Ukraine by violating international law and using military force, then it’s a message to other authoritarian leaders – Beijing as well – that they can get what they want using military force.”

If Putin were to win, the NATO chief continued, it would be a tragedy for the Ukrainians. But it would also be dangerous for all the rest of us.

“We have no evidence that China has supplied weapons to Russia. If this were to happen, it would be a very serious mistake for China to make. Because that would support an illegal war of aggression where Russia has attacked another country. Therefore, the position was also clear from the United States, that China should not do this,” he noted. “In such a case, financial sanctions can be foreseen. But the most important thing is to avoid such a situation,” he explained.

The warning came as Stoltenberg admitted that the devastated Ukrainian city of Bakhmut is likely to fall to Russia in the coming days after months of fierce fighting.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has made it clear that he considers the island of Taiwan an integral part of China in accordance with the “One China” doctrine.

Taiwan’s democratically elected president maintains that the island is a self-governing state whose people overwhelmingly reject reunification with mainland China.