China-Russia Joint Statement Criticizes US 'Golden Dome' Missile Defense System

(CNA, Taipei, May 21) Russian President Vladimir Putin visited China from May 19 to 20 and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. According to Chinese state media, China and Russia issued a joint statement on the 20th, criticizing the 'Golden Dome' missile defense system being promoted by the United States, claiming it significantly increases the risk of conflict in space. Putin's visit to China followed a state visit by U.S. President Donald Trump to China from May 13 to 15. After the Xi-Putin meeting, the two sides released the 'Joint Statement of the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation on Further Strengthening Comprehensive Strategic Coordination and Deepening Good-Neighborly and Friendly Cooperation.' Afterward, Xi Jinping and Putin jointly met with reporters. According to this joint statement, both sides believe that the U.S. 'Golden Dome' program aims to build a global, multi-layered, multi-domain missile defense system, free from any constraints, to counter all missiles from any 'peer' adversary from pre-launch preparation through all phases of flight, causing significant damage to strategic stability. The statement indicated that the program greatly increases the risk of armed conflict in outer space, encourages the placement of weapons in outer space, extends armed conflicts into outer space, and promotes the use or threat of force against objects in outer space or the use of force via objects from outer space, departing from the goals and purposes of peaceful use of outer space stipulated in the 'Outer Space Treaty.' Furthermore, the statement also mentioned the Russia-Ukraine war, stating that the root causes of the 'Ukraine crisis' must be addressed to achieve lasting peace. The statement also said that military strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran violate international law and the basic norms of international relations, severely undermining stability in the Middle East. The statement also mentioned that both sides emphasized that Japan's current acceleration of 're-militarization' 'seriously threatens regional peace and stability, and the international community and regional countries are highly vigilant about this.' China and Russia will continue to maintain close communication and coordination to play a constructive role in promoting the political settlement process of the Korean Peninsula issue, building a peace mechanism on the Korean Peninsula, and maintaining long-term peace and stability in Northeast Asia.