Criticism by ex-US official dismissed

A Chinese scholar has refuted allegations by Stephen Hadley, a former US national security adviser, that China's diplomacy in the Asia-Pacific has escalated regional tensions.

Wu Xinbo, executive dean of the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University, told the People's Daily on Saturday that Hadley's allegations reflected the United States' concerns about China's rise in the Asia-Pacific and the US' intention to complicate matters in the region.

At the World Peace Forum in Beijing over the weekend, Hadley said China is trying to deny the US military access to waters off the Chinese coast, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.