The onset of World War III is anticipated when Chinese President Xi Jinping initiates an invasion of Taiwan and enlists the help of his ally, Russian leader Vladimir Putin, to target NATO nations, thereby distracting them from the Pacific theater, warned the alliance’s top leader.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte cautioned that it would be “naive” to think Xi’s aspirations to take over Taiwan would strictly be a bilateral endeavor. He predicted that such aggression would result in a dual-front conflict.

“There’s a growing understanding, and we should not be naive about this: If Xi Jinping decides to attack Taiwan, he would initially coordinate with his considerably junior partner in this scenario, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, stationed in Moscow. He would inform Putin, ‘I’m proceeding with this, and I require you to keep NATO occupied in Europe by launching attacks on their territories,’” Rutte explained to The New York Times.

Xi and Putin have touted their close partnership throughout Russia’ invasion of Ukraine, with the Chinese president previously stating that their alliance has “no limits.”

Rutte’s prediction that Beijing would use Moscow to distract the West echoes reports from the European Union’s meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week, where the official allegedly claimed Xi cannot afford to see Russia lose the war in Ukraine.

The shock revelation reportedly saw Wang drop all pretenses and described Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a blessing that allowed focus to shift away from Beijing’s looming invasion of Taiwan, sources familiar with the talks told the South China Morning Post.

American and Taiwanese officials predicted that China would mount its assault on Taiwan come 2027, as Beijing seeks to annex the independent country.

Rutte warned that the world has also seen what a Russo-Pacific alliance can accomplish through the developments of the war in Ukraine, which has already seen more than 12,000 North Korean soldiers deployed to assist Moscow’s invasion effort.

The conflict has also seen Moscow get its hands on Iranian-made drones, with the EU also accusing Chinese companies of supporting Russia’s military complex.

“So here, the Indo-Pacific and your Atlantic are getting more and more interconnected,” Rutte explained as he backed the call for NATO nations to raise their defense spending.

“We know that China has its eye on Taiwan. Given this whole geopolitical setup, there is no way we can defend ourselves if we stick to this old 2 percent,” he added.

In order to curb the risk of global war, Rutte said it was imperative that NATO bolster its forces in order to scare Russia from expanding its invasion further into Europe.

He also called on western nations to unite and curb China’s aggression in the Indo-Pacific, which has seen Beijing perform several, large-scale military drills surrounding Taiwan.

Former Russian President and top Putin ally Dmitry Medvedev slammed Rutte’s prediction of World War III and mocked the NATO secretary general on X.

“SG Rutte has clearly gorged on too many of the magic mushrooms beloved by the Dutch,” Medvedev wrote.

“He sees collusion between China & Russia over Taiwan, and then a Russian attack on Europe,” he added. “But he’s right about one thing: he should learn Russian. It might come in handy in a Siberian camp.