Photo taken on April 5, 2016 shows the lighthouse on Zhubi Reef of Nansha Islands in the South China Sea, south China. (Xinhua file photo)
The involvement of the United States in the South China Sea issue has aggravated the tense situation of the Asia-Pacific region and has its hidden agenda, experts say. Following are some quotable quotes.
-- Narayanman Bijukchhe, chairman of Nepal Workers and Peasants Party:
South China Sea has been unnecessarily dragged in dispute by Western countries, primarily the U.S., to maintain the hegemonic exploitation over Asian countries.
-- Sergei Luzianin, acting director of the Institute for Far Eastern Studies from the Russian Academy of Sciences:
The launch of the tribunal is a collective effort to impose on China an alternative view on the South China Sea division. The United States is creating informal anti-Chinese coalitions or groups to dispute China's sovereignty.
-- Xulio Rios, director of the Observatory of Chinese Politics of Spain:
The intervention of the court in these disputes is part of a strategy to put pressure on China, which at the same time is inseparable from the growing U.S. involvement in the litigations.
-- Mahmoud Allam, former Egyptian Ambassador to China:
Increasing attention to the South China Sea goes in parallel with the U.S. strategy of "pivot to the Asia-Pacific," and it also serves Washington's plan of deploying an anti-missile system on the Korean Peninsula. It is simply an excuse for the United States to tighten its grip on Asia and curb China's rise.
-- William Jones, Washington Bureau Chief of U.S. publication Executive Intelligence Review:
The intervention, and really the role of the United States, has become the most aggravating part (of the South China Sea issue).
-- Peter Li, associate professor at Houston Downtown University:
To the United States, China could be pulled into extended conflicts. Resources would have to be diverted to military preparations, affecting people's livelihood.
