West setting Asia up for years of conflict - Russia

RT
Tue, 14 Mar 2023 12:13 UTC

© Sputnik/Murad Orujov

FILE PHOTO: "I would like to reiterate that Russia is fully responsible for the security of Transnistria in full accordance with the mandate that our troops have. We will be guided by this mandate," the top diplomat pointed out

Pushing blocs like AUKUS and NATO into the region will cause confrontation, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned...

The West's expansion of its military presence in Asia risks causing a prolonged conflict because people in the region will not accept the move, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.

At a gathering in Moscow on Tuesday, he said:

"By pushing "bloc structures, such as AUKUS and NATO infrastructure into Asia, Western leaders are making a serious bid for a confrontation lasting for many, long years. I cannot imagine the great Asian civilizations toeing the line the way the EU unfortunately did, and obediently delivering Washington's agenda."

AUKUS - a military alliance comprising the UK, US and Australia - was touted as a mechanism to counter China's influence in the Asia-Pacific region when it was founded in 2021.

Beijing this week reiterated its criticism of AUKUS and Canberra's plan to procure US-made nuclear-propelled submarines, citing the risk of nuclear proliferation posed by the technology used in the boats.

Earlier this month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi accused the US of trying to build an "Indo-Pacific NATO" and stir tensions between Beijing and New Delhi. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin previously denied having such plans. Last year, the US-led military bloc invited the leaders of Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand to attend its key summit in Madrid, Spain.

Tensions between the US and China have been rising for years, with Taiwan, a self-administered island, becoming the focus of conflict. Senior US officials have been making regular visits to Taipei against Beijing's wishes. The administration of President Joe Biden approved sales of advanced weapons to the island, claiming it needed to protect itself from a possible Chinese attack.

Chinese President Xi Jinping asserted last week that Washington was trying to impose "all-round containment, encirclement and suppression" of his nation.

Lavrov, who was speaking at the inaugural meeting of the International Russophile Movement, said Moscow was not in the habit of ordering other nations around - unlike Western countries.

The new organization, which the foreign minister welcomed on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was proposed by Bulgarian politician Nikolay Malinov, whose sympathies towards the country are well known. In 2019, Putin presented him the Order of Friendship, a Russian honor recognizing foreign nationals for achievements in fostering international cooperation.

Comment: Former Australian PM Paul Keating denounces AUKUS and the implications of this alliance:

Former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating has fired a broadside against the current government for its endorsement of the AUKUS security bloc and the purchase of American submarines. It doesn't help protect the country and drags it into the US attempt to preserve its hegemony by containing China, he has argued.

Keating, who chaired the Australian government in the 1990s, reiterated his negative view of the purchase of Virginia-class nuclear-powered boats in a lengthy rebuke this week. He branded it the "worst international decision" by an Australian Labor government since conscription in World War I. "It must be the worst deal in all history."

The Australian Royal Navy is buying up to five attack submarines from the US and possibly building three more with the UK's help. The deal is estimated to cost 360 billion Australian dollars ($240bn).

With that investment, Australia could have 40 to 50 domestically-built Collins-class diesel-electric submarines instead, Keating suggested.

A larger fleet would be far better at protecting Australia from a possible invasion, which would require an "armada of troops ships" reaching its coast, he believes. Meanwhile, the nuclear subs would be sent to the Chinese coast to potentially take part in a US-Chinese conflict, the former prime minister suggested.

"It's a strange way to defend Australia to have your submarines sunk on the Chinese continental shelf chasing Chinese submarines. We are part of a [US] containment policy against China. It's about one matter only: the maintenance of US strategic hegemony in Southeast Asia."

The politician dismissed as "rubbish" the idea that China poses a military threat to Australia in the first place and shamed national journalists peddling it.

China warns the sub agreement could trigger a regional arms race:

The trilateral bloc has "gone further down a wrong and dangerous road," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said commenting on US President Joe Biden's decision to supply the military hardware to Australia.

Wang warned that the deal could have broader implications towards peace in the Indo-Pacific region, and might "stimulate an arms race, undermine the international nuclear non-proliferation system and damage regional peace and stability."

When asked on Monday if Beijing was justified in considering the nuclear submarines deal as a security threat or an act of aggression, Biden responded: "No."

A joint statement released by Biden, Sunak, and Albanese on Monday said that the "historic" deal indicated the three nations sought to "sustain peace, stability and prosperity around the world."