Defense Ministry voices concern over US moves in Southeast Asia

A spokesman for the defense ministry expressed great concern about the US' latest moves in Southeast Asia, saying China is paying close attention to the situation.

During the recent visit to the Philippines by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the US announced it gained access to four military bases in the Southeast Asian country and the two countries would resume joint patrols in the South China Sea.

Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense, refuted those actions, calling the US "the most dangerous factor and the biggest source of chaos aggravating regional tensions and threatening regional peace and stability".

"At present, the US is constantly seeking to strengthen its military deployment in the region and scheming for confrontations between camps, which will only create more trust deficit and tensions," he said.

Tan added defense and security cooperation among countries "should be conducive to regional peace and stability and should not target or harm the interests of a third party".

He reminded countries in the region to "see the true purpose of the US in maintaining its hegemony, to avoid being dragged into the wrong path of bloc confrontations and zero-sum games".