The Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States have disregarded the concerns of the international community and gone further down a dangerous road.

The ministry's spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the comments at a regular news briefing when asked about the United States, Australia and Britain planning to provide Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines.

"The latest joint statement from the US, UK and Australia demonstrates that the three countries, for the sake of their own geopolitical interests, completely disregard the concerns of the international communities and are walking further and further down the path of error and danger," Wang added.

Wang accused the three Western allies of inciting an arms race, saying the security deal, known as Aukus, was "a typical case of Cold War mentality".

The sale of submarines "constitutes a severe nuclear proliferation risk, and violates the aims and objectives of the Non-Proliferation Treaty," Wang said.

However, in response to a question about an expected talk between President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden, Wang stressed that Beijing and Washington are maintaining necessary communications.

"We believe that the value and significance of communication is to enhance understanding, manage differences, not for the sake of communication,” he told reporters.

Meanwhile, Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West on Tuesday of fomenting "years of confrontation" in the Asia-Pacific region after the Aukus alliance agreed a nuclear-powered submarines deal.

"The Anglo-Saxon world, with the creation of structures like Aukus and with the advancement of Nato military infrastructures into Asia, is making a serious bet on many years of confrontation" in the region, Lavrov said in televised comments. (Reuters/AFP)
______________________________
Last updated: 2023-03-14 HKT 17:32