As the United States is preparing to shift its military focus to Asia in a few years time, a university professor says he believes America is pursuing the "militarization of strategic waterways" in the region.
In an interview with the U.S. Desk on Saturday, Michel Chossudovsky, director of the Centre for Research on Globalization and professor of economics at the University of Ottawa, said that east Asia is a strategic region for the U.S. and the military shift towards Asia "is essentially directed against China."
The United States will move the majority of its warships to the Asia-Pacific in coming years and keep six aircraft carriers in the region, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Saturday in Singapore, giving the first details of a new U.S. military strategy.
Chinese officials have been critical of the U.S. shift of military emphasis to Asia, seeing it as an attempt to fence in the country and frustrate Beijing's territorial claims.
