Senior Russian Official Calls AUKUS and QUAD Alliance Unfriendly, Offends ASEAN

JAKARTA - A senior Russian official considers several alliances made by countries in the world to be unfriendly, although he also commends that other alliances are considered more neutral, highlighting the Asia Pacific region.

Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said Russia views certain alliances, such as AUKUS and QUAD, as hostile alliances.

"Because NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization, ed) is interfering in their affairs," Medvedev told the media on Tuesday, reported by TASS, May 24.

"It is very clear that some alliances and relations are neutral towards our country. We take part in certain alliances, for example, ASEAN, as an invited participant," he said, given the existence of the ASEAN+ format.

"Some of the alliances formed are almost unfriendly to the countries of the region. This is how we see QUAD, AUKUS, and several other alliances, which are connected with the creation of partnerships with extra-regional players. NATO has tried to gain a foothold here," explained Medvedev.

He said NATO had begun to engage in its own projects in the Asia-Pacific Region and Indochina. Meanwhile, NATO's officially proclaimed goals are very different, he stressed.

"Nevertheless, they have created common alliances and are directly involved in destabilizing the situation here. This is very bad. We have also discussed this issue with our partners," Medvedev said.

It is known that QUAD is an Asia-Pacific alliance between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States which was first launched in 2007, then renewed after renegotiation in 2017.

The AUKUS is a trilateral security pact between Australia, Britain, and the United States which was launched on 15 September 2021.

In a video call at the end of 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping criticized AKUS and QUAD, saying that each country must be firm in rejecting Western interference, defending each other's security interests.

Specifically regarding AUKUS, China highlighted that the alliance could trigger an arms race in the world, deeming it useless and dangerous.

"Once the 'Pandora's box' is opened, the regional strategic balance will be disrupted, regional security will be seriously threatened," Tan Kefei, a spokesman for China's Defense Ministry, told a news conference last March, as quoted by Reuters.

"China resolutely opposes the establishment of a so-called 'trilateral security partnership' between the United States, Britain, and Australia. This small circle dominated by a Cold War mentality is useless and very dangerous," Tan said.

He added that such cooperation is an extension of each country's nuclear deterrence policy, a game tool for building the "Asia-Pacific version of NATO" and seriously affects peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.