BEIJING,
China — Beijing rapped Washington Tuesday for its interventions in Asia, as tensions grow between
the two powers over territorial disputes in the South China Sea and how to handle increasingly erratic
North Korea.

Speaking at the 7th annual Xiangshan regional defense forum in Beijing, Chang
Wanguan, China’s defense minister, levied thinly veiled criticism at recent US involvement in Asia’s
trouble spots.

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Washington has conducted freedom of
navigation operations close to artificial islands Beijing has built in the South China Sea, and has
agreed to deploy a missile defense system in South Korea following repeated nuclear and missile
tests by Beijing’s ally Pyongyang.

“Some countries seek absolute military superiority,
ceaselessly strengthen their military alliances, and seek their own absolute security at the costs of
other countries’ security,” Chang told defense officials and academics at the meeting.

The US
under President Barack Obama has sought to “pivot” to Asia by increasing military and economic
engagement in the region, raising concerns in Beijing that Washington is working to contain the Asian
giant’s growing power.

“Some countries seek absolute military superiority,
ceaselessly strengthen their military alliances, and seek their own absolute security at the costs of
other countries’ security,” Chang told defense officials and academics at the meeting.

Tuesday’s meeting — themed on “building a new type of international relations” — followed a year
of growing tension in the region, primarily centered on Beijing’s actions in the strategically vital South
China Sea, where it has built islands capable of supporting military facilities.

China says it
has rights to almost the entire region, while Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, and Taiwan
all have rival claims.

In July, an international tribunal said that almost all of Beijing’s claims
have no legal basis, a decision China attacked as biased and vowed to ignore.

Washington
argues that Beijing’s moves pose a challenge to freedom of navigation and has sought to challenge
Beijing’s claims by dispatching military ships and aircraft to the area.

Addressing the forum, former Australian Prime Minister Robert Hawke warned that the disputes, if
not properly managed, could become “a flashpoint for US-China conflict”.

“These disputes
have the potential to disrupt the entire regional order,” he said.

Addressing the
forum, former Australian Prime Minister Robert Hawke warned that the disputes, if not properly
managed, could become “a flashpoint for US-China conflict”.

China has also
raised concerns over Washington and Seoul’s decision this summer to install a THAAD missile
defense system in South Korea in response to growing worries about its northern neighbor’s nuclear
program.

Beijing, Pyongyang’s sole ally and largest trade partner, claims the move will
program.

Beijing, Pyongyang’s sole ally and largest trade partner, claims the move will
destabilize regional security, a position that is supported by Moscow.

Speaking on a panel
during the forum, Russian deputy defense minister Anatoly Antonov slammed the agreement.

“We are concerned about the attempts of certain nations to exploit the complex situation in the
Korean peninsula,” he said, “pumping this sub-region with clearly excessive defense
capabilities.”

The decision has “aggravated regional tension” and “adds problems to solving
the situation.”

North Korea conducted its fifth nuclear test last month, drawing international
censure and a push to put further sanctions on the isolated country. CBB