In an interview with Channel News Asia television on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov slammed the US military presence in the continent as disproportionally huge.
"The United States is engaged in a very huge military buildup in Asia, including under the pretext of countering the North Korean threat but the scale of the buildup is way beyond the need and disproportionally huge," the Russian foreign minister said.
Lavrov also described as unhelpful the ongoing military cooperation between Washington, Tokyo and Seoul in installing missile systems in the restive region.
Russia’s top diplomat added that Moscow is currently in possession of the required technology to counter the US missile installations all over the world, but has no intention to engage in an arms race with Washington.
"Russia does not want any arms race and Russia would not engage in the arms race. We have enough technological means to provide a not very expensive answer to the efforts to build missile defense," Lavrov stated.
He criticized US President Barack Obama for claims that Washington’s military buildup was to counter Iran’s nuclear program, saying there is no more excuse for US military activities following the recent agreement over Tehran’s nuclear work.
"President Obama in 2009 publicly said that if the Iranian nuclear issue is resolved, there would be no need for missile defense in Europe. It seems that he was not telling the truth," the Russian official said.
Lavrov’s remarks came a week after Beijing voiced concern over Washington’s rising military activity in the South China Sea, saying the US provocations pose a threat to the regional security and stability.
“The Chinese side expresses its deep concern about the United States pushing the militarization,” said Chinese Defense Ministry Spokesman Colonel Yang Yujun, adding, “The behavior by the United States can only lead one to suspect whether the American side is driven by a desire to see the world in turmoil.”