NATO has accused Beijing of conspiring with Moscow to subvert the international rules-based order, as part of a new 10-year blueprint that identifies China as a global threat, and brands Russia the most significant and direct menace to European security, peace and stability.

Beijing reacted angrily to the NATO Strategic Concept, agreed to at its summit in Madrid, accusing the 32-member alliance of trying to launch a new cold war.

“What they should do is give up their Cold War mindset, zero-sum games, and stop doing things that create enemies. Stop trying to mess up Asia and the world after messing up Europe,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said.

NATO’s classification of China’s “stated ambitions and coercive policies” as a challenge to “our interests, security and values” came against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which China both supports and has indirectly facilitated.

NATO’s stance, which is the first time China has been listed as a threat since the alliance was formed in 1949, was supported by Australia and its Pacific allies Japan, South Korea and New Zealand, the leaders of which were invited to Madrid for the summit.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told the summit China wanted to be “the most powerful country in the world” while Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the threats posed by Russia and China could not be separated.

“The security of Europe and the security of the Indo-Pacific cannot be decoupled,” he said.

NATO said: “The deepening strategic partnership between the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation and their mutually reinforcing attempts to undercut the rules-based international order run counter to our values and interests.”

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