Kyodo News reported from Washington that a White House official said on Thursday that the United States does not view the participation of Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand at the upcoming NATO summit as a move toward the creation of an “Asian version of NATO.” “This isn’t about an Asian version of NATO. NATO is a trans-Atlantic security alliance,” John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said, touching on the expected attendance of the four Asia-Pacific nations at a NATO summit for the first time. The wire service said that Kirby said the participation of the Asia-Pacific partners in the NATO summit is “an indication of the linkage of global security between Europe and the Indo-Pacific.” “It’s not one or the other anymore… The same kinds of assaults on territorial integrity and sovereignty that we’re seeing in Europe can happen in the Indo Pacific,” he added. Kyodo said that China has been warning against some European countries stepping up their engagement in the Indo-Pacific as well as against the formation of a military alliance in the region akin to NATO.