'Deliberately aimed to stoke the conflict': Russia, China accuse US of stoking Mideast tensions

During a Monday UN Security Council meeting, China and Russia accused the US of using its recent retaliatory strikes on groups in Iraq and Syria that receive support from Iran to inflame the already high tensions in the Middle East. In response for a drone assault on a facility in Jordan on January 28 that claimed the lives of three US soldiers, the US military launched nocturnal strikes against dozens of sites in Syria and Iraq on Friday and Saturday. There are now concerns that the present Israel-Hamas battle in Gaza may turn into a regional crisis as a result of the attacks, which were directed against elite Iranian troops and terrorist organisations that support Iran. “It’s clear that American airstrikes are specifically, deliberately aimed to stoke the conflict,” said Russian ambassador Vasily Nebenzia, whose country had called for the emergency meeting. China’s ambassador Jun Zhang similarly claimed that the “US actions will certainly exacerbate the vicious cycle of tit-for-tat violence in the Middle East.” Anger over Israel’s devastating campaign in Gaza – which began after an unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7 – has grown across the Middle East, stoking violence involving Iran-backed groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. A UN official called for “all parties to step back from the brink and to consider the unbearable human and economic cost of a potential regional conflict.” “I appeal to the Council to continue to actively engage all concerned parties to prevent further escalation and the worsening of tensions that undermine regional peace and security,” said Rosemary DiCarlo, under-secretary-general for political and peacebuilding affairs. The American strikes have drawn criticism from the governments of Iraq and Syria, and also from Iran, which denies any role in last month’s drone attack. “Any attempt to attribute these actions to Iran or its armed forces is misleading, baseless and unacceptable,” Iranian ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani told the Council on Monday. He pledged that if Iran faces “any threat, attack or aggression affecting its security,” it would “not hesitate to exercise its inherent rights… to respond firmly.” The White House said Sunday it plans more retaliatory action. “Let me be clear, United States does not desire more conflict in a region when we are actively working to contain and deescalate the conflict in Gaza,” said deputy ambassador Robert Wood. He added: “We are not seeking a direct conflict with Iran, but we will continue to defend our personnel against unacceptable attacks. Period.”