Does the US want to create a second Middle East in East Asia?
US interventionist policy in East Asia worries some experts.
A number of Chinese experts, referring to US policy within the framework of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting, expressed concern that Washington, by creating a conflict, will turn this region into a second Middle East.
According to Russia Today, Chen Xiangmiao, director of the Global Naval Research Center of the National Maritime Research Institute of South China, said: "Although the situation in the Southeast Asian region is currently peaceful, ASEAN members are concerned that if the US creates a conflict in the region, it could turn into a 'second Middle East.'
ASEAN countries, which are following the growing tension in the Middle East and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, have the opportunity to discuss ways of crisis management within the framework of this summit.
Chen added: "Foreigners' interference in the process of resolving disputes in the South China Sea will only worsen the situation."
In an interview with "France Press", a high-ranking Beijing official emphasized that the new Prime Minister of Japan, Shigeru Ishiba, will meet with the leaders of the member states within the framework of the ASEAN meeting to discuss the idea of creating an Asian NATO.
ASEAN is a group of 10 Southeast Asian countries established on August 8, 1967 by Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia. Later, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Brunei also joined the group.
The group's member countries, with their large populations and relative stability, are located in a region full of resources for economic growth and profitability.
