US Nuclear Deployment in Southeast Asia Will Lead to Regional Insecurity: Russia
Russian FM Seregei Lavrov, July 28, 2024. Photo: X/ @nxt888
July 29, 2024 Hour: 10:18 am
AUKUS ‘must be put under the control of the International Atomic Energy Agency’, FM Lavrov said.
On Sunday, Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the deployment of U.S. nuclear weapons in Southeast Asia would heighten regional security risks.
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Lavrov stated the United States has long been sharing nuclear weapons with its NATO partners in what it calls “joint nuclear missions,” in which non-nuclear states can train their soldiers to use nuclear weapons. That practice is now shifting to Asia.
“If this sad and rather risky experience (the deployment of U.S. nuclear weapons in other countries) is brought to Southeast Asia, I think no one will benefit from it; the risks will increase,” he said after his visit to Kuala Lumpur.
The United States is “impudently” pushing its military infrastructure, including strategic weapons, into the region, militarizing Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific, Lavrov pointed out.
“The Americans are making attempts to escalate the situation not only around the Korean Peninsula but also around the Taiwan Strait in the South China Sea. They are pushing the countries in the region to stop looking for political and diplomatic solutions with Beijing on the South China Sea,” Lavrov said.
“On the contrary, the Americans are setting these countries up for confrontation and ultimatums against China. That is no good,” he added, and mentioned the Military Security Partnership by Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States (AUKUS), which implies a project to build nuclear-powered submarines.
AUKUS aims to instill “tolerance in the Asian region concerning the deployment of nuclear weapons components,” Lavrov said. It “must be put under the control of the International Atomic Energy Agency” for “full transparency.”
Lavrov also said the recent agreement between the United States and South Korea on joint nuclear planning is yet another extension of U.S. strategic influence in the region.
Autor: teleSUR/ JF
Fuente: Xinhua