Liz Truss has called for western powers to create an “economic NATO” in a bid to stand up to China.
The former prime minister, who survived just 49 days in the post, travelled to Tokyo to present six proposals to counter the influence of the eastern superpower as she warned that the “free world is in danger”.
Speaking at the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China Symposium, Truss recommended an audit of China’s reach across critical industries as well as deeper economic links across the G7 to combat its influence.
The “economic NATO” would focus on a united regime of sanctions, predicated on the idea that they have worked against Russia.
Such an alliance would have the equivalent to NATO’s Article 5 — where an attack on one member leads to retaliation by all of them.
And like NATO, the alliance would be expected to act as a deterrent, focussing specifically on dissuading President Xi from making aggressive movements against Taiwan.
But her comments have provoked a bemused reaction on social media – with everyone saying the same thing:
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