America: The situation in the South China Sea is worrying

According to the international group Tasnim News Agency, Daniel Kreitenbrink US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs stated that the situation in the South China Sea is deeply China’s recent actions in these waters are alarming and deeply destabilizing.

During his visit to Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, in the midst of growing tensions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea, he added: “We think that China’s actions, especially its recent actions around the Thomas Schall II Islands, are irresponsible in relation to the Philippines. It is aggressive, dangerous and deeply destabilizing.   

This American diplomat He stated that we always stand by our Filipino ally. Washington has publicly and privately made it clear to Beijing that the requirements of Washington’s bilateral defense agreement with the Philippines are iron and firm.

This is while the government of Manila after accusing China of disrupting a resupply operation In the disputed waters of the South China Sea at the beginning of this month, he stated on Friday that he will not invoke the bilateral defense agreement with the United States.

At the same time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China condemned the accusations of the Philippines and said: necessary measures Adopted, legal, professional and beyond reproach.

Kreitenbrink noted that we believe that every country in the region, including China, should respect international laws and behave responsibly in the maritime domain.

while Some time ago About 17 thousand soldiers of the American and Philippine armies held their annual military exercises called “Balikatan 2024″. or shoulder to shoulder”, in the midst of tensions in the South China Sea.

The American and Philippine armies fired missiles and artillery to neutralize and repulse the attacks. simulated in the northern waters of the Philippines in a possible confrontation with Taiwan in their annual military exercise. /span>

According to this report, in this exercise, about 200 soldiers defended the shores of the coastal city of Laoag and launched javelin missiles and howitzer cannons and fired machine guns to thwart the enemy’s attempts to repel the attack on the beaches.

In the meantime, America and the Philippines held joint exercises in the South China Sea last year.

Until now, American officials, including Joe Biden, have insisted on Washington’s inviolable commitment to support the Philippines against any armed attacks under They emphasized the bilateral defense agreement of 1951.

Kreitenbrink also responded to a question about his view of Vietnam’s foreign policy regarding Russia and the country’s recent hosting of President Vladimir Putin, saying: “Only Vietnam can decide what to do to maintain sovereignty.” Make the best decision for yourself and advance your interests.

In the meantime, during Joe Biden’s visit to this country in September last year, Vietnam and the United States upgraded their relations to the level of comprehensive strategic friendship, which is the highest level of relations in the rankings. It is diplomatic.

Kreitenbrink called this promotion of relations historic and important and stressed that he is seeking to maintain this level of relations to ensure the implementation of all agreements.

We still believe that the US-Vietnam relations, It has not been this strong.

Beijing claims most of the South China Sea. More than 3 trillion dollars of commercial cargoes pass through the communication route every year. Beijing has always criticized the joint exercises of the countries in this area and states that these measures increase tensions and disrupt peace and stability in the region.

Repelling foreign attacks in the US-Philippine joint exercise