US should refrain from confrontational approach

Since the release of its National Security Strategy in February 2022, the United States has been actively implementing a containment strategy against China, leveraging its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, nurturing anti-Chinese sentiment and intervening in the affairs of countries in the region.

The US' unilateral, hegemonic approach poses risks to peace and prosperity and should be dropped, the sooner the better.

In pursuit of its goal, the US views regional small powers as potential force multipliers, and is working to enhance their defense capabilities and provoking them against China for its personal interests in the Asia-Pacific.

For instance, the US has been waging wars, weaponizing countries, intruding on the sovereignty of other states and halting peace processes. The containment strategy involves a significant increase in the US military presence in the region, encompassing the deployment of military ships, planes and troops.

The overarching concept behind containment is to curb China's rise as an economic powerhouse and to militarize the region by encircling it through alliances, military bases and economic circles.

The US is attempting to maintain hegemony through camp antagonism, which threatens regional peace and security. In recent years, Washington has been actively promoting the so-called "Indo-Pacific" strategy and great power competition to build an alliance in the Asia-Pacific region, with the primary goal of containing China and fueling a tense and zero-sum competition.

The formation of US-led regional frameworks, such as the Quad diplomatic partnership of Australia, India, Japan and the US, and the AUKUS security alliance of Australia, the United Kingdom and the US, as well as active involvement in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, are concrete examples of US interference in the region. Such bloc camps show long-term US strategic goals and are central to the pessimistic US foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific.

The administration of US President Joe Biden, which is trapped in a Cold War mindset, has been keen on creating "small cliques "directed against China. The US approach poses an immediate threat to the free and open international system and recklessly flouts the basic laws of the international order.

Tensions between China and the US often escalate due to the increasing frequency and intensity of US military activities in the South China Sea. The US has been conducting close-in reconnaissance operations and military exercises in waters near China since 2009, amplifying tensions in the region. Such actions have also undermined the sovereignty of these nations.

The broader goal of this alliance is to counter China's rise and its strategic presence in the Asia-Pacific region, potentially giving rise to bloc-based divisions or destabilization that could undermine the broader goal of regional cohesion and progress. In this narrow domain, the US continues to aim to maintain regional dominance and has the potential to fuel regional tensions.

This not only poses a threat to China's national security, but also contradicts the spirit of the United Nations Charter and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Despite the US' persistent attempts to disrupt peace and its stance against China, many countries have opted not to align with the hard-line approach advocated by Washington.

Instead, these nations are expanding their economic collaboration with China, implementing cooperative strategies to diversify their business collaboration and establishing new supply chains in developing countries.

The Cold War mentality contradicts the interconnected nature of countries in the present era, posing a threat to common interests and peace. Amid increasing interconnectedness among countries, the US framework goes against the trend of the times by engaging in bloc confrontation.

President Xi Jinping has put forward new major-power relations based on peace, mutual benefit and respect, rather than great-power rivalry and a zero-sum game. China consistently upholds a vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, rather than confrontation.

Regional organizations like the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization offer a different approach that emphasizes dialogue, cooperation and long-term regional stability and prosperity. China's role in the SCO and with ASEAN is very pragmatic and cooperative. China's vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity emphasizes win-win cooperation, genuine multilateralism and Chinese solutions to jointly safeguard world peace and development.

The right of each country to choose its own development path and safeguard its territorial integrity should be respected. China has always pursued cooperation, dialogue and a shared commitment to peace and mutual benefit. The US should steer away from confrontational approaches that jeopardize the interests of all nations.

The author is executive director of the Pakistan Research Center for a Community with Shared Future in Islamabad. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.