US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" seeks to peddle bloc confrontation in Asia-Pacific: Chinese expert

The so-called "Indo-Pacific Strategy" of the United States seeks to gang up to form exclusive blocs, stir up confrontation and undermine integration and peace in the Asia-Pacific region, a Chinese military expert said Saturday.

While attending the 22nd edition of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Meng Xiangqing, a professor at the National Defense University of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, said in an interview with the China Central Television (CCTV) that the "Indo-Pacific Strategy" runs counter to the common aspiration of the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for cooperation and development.

At the annual Asia security summit, the United States once again peddled its "Indo-Pacific Strategy", which will lead nowhere except provoking incidents, creating crises, and disrupting the Asia-Pacific region, Meng said.

"We believe that the so-called 'Indo-Pacific Strategy' of the United States is a tool of hegemony in essence. In the military front, it provokes bloc confrontation. In the Asia-Pacific region, the United States has led in building a so-called 'quadrilateral mechanism' consisting of the United States, Japan, India and Australia. It has also created AUKUS, a so-called trilateral nuclear-powered submarine partnership among Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, which excluded most countries in the region. In the political and diplomatic fronts, the United States forces other countries to take sides. In the technological front, the United States builds 'a small yard with high fences.' In the economic front, it has initiated a trade war and a tariff war aimed at decoupling. Meanwhile, the United States has practiced value-hijacking. In a word, the United States attempts to stoke bloc confrontation in the Asia-Pacific region," he said.

The Asia-Pacific region is a highland of global development, and peace and stability are hard-won, said Meng, adding that only the Chinese solution can bring development prospects to the region, which is also the common aspiration of neighboring countries in Asia, he said.

"China has reached consensus on building a community with a shared future for mankind with 17 neighboring countries, and signed Belt and Road cooperation agreements with 25 countries in the region. At the same time, it has built a cooperation network of two major clusters in the Indochina Peninsula and Central Asia. It should be said that China has contributed the wisdom of peaceful development in the Asia-Pacific region and put forward the Chinese solution. Peace, development and cooperation are the trend of history. We used to say that the trend of history is unstoppable. If you follow it, you will prosper, and if you go against it, you will perish. Therefore, peddling the so-called Indo-Pacific Strategy aimed at bloc confrontation finds little support here," Meng said.

Running from May 30 to June 1, this year's dialogue drew representatives from 47 countries, including 40 ministerial-level delegates, 20 chief of defense forces-level delegates, over 20 senior defense officials, and prominent academics, according to the Singapore Ministry of Defense.

US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" seeks to peddle bloc confrontation in Asia-Pacific: Chinese expert

US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" seeks to peddle bloc confrontation in Asia-Pacific: Chinese expert

US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" seeks to peddle bloc confrontation in Asia-Pacific: Chinese expert

US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" seeks to peddle bloc confrontation in Asia-Pacific: Chinese expert

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Monday that the situation in Iran is "under total control" following violence linked to protests that spiked over the weekend.

Addressing foreign diplomats in Tehran, the foreign minister noted that armed terrorist groups had infiltrated the protests, attempting to divert them from their legitimate course. He claimed that evidence has been gathered showing Iranian security forces being shot at, with the aim of causing further casualties. He accused the United States and Israel of exploiting the unrest to interfere in Iran's internal affairs.

Araghchi further stated that the government is closely monitoring developments on the streets, emphasizing that "the situation has come under control." He also affirmed that internet services, curtailed during the unrest, would be restored after coordination with security agencies.

The government has engaged in dialogue with merchants and protest representatives and initiated reforms to address grievances related to price hikes and currency depreciation. Iran has taken a series of actions and measures to respond to the demands of peaceful demonstrators, the foreign minister said.

Earlier on Sunday, Araghchi said that clear evidence links recent riots and vandalism of public facilities in Iran to the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad. This came after former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo mentioned Mossad agents operating on Iran's streets in a social media post. The Iranian foreign minister asserted that police are being attacked by "terrorists" acting under the direction of Israeli operatives, whom Pompeo publicly acknowledged.

The protests initially erupted over a sharp depreciation of the rial and sweeping subsidy reforms. Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign-linked agents and U.S. sanctions.

Iranian foreign minister says situation "fully under control," accuses Israeli intelligence of stoking unrest