Beijing accused the US on Tuesday of threatening peace by creating "imaginary enemies," after Washington announced new military efforts to confront China and Russia.

A senior US official stated on Monday that the US will expand and upgrade its military facilities in Guam and Australia, underscoring its focus on China as the country's leading defense rival.

In response, Beijing accused Washington of creating "imaginary enemies," and plotting to encircle and confront China.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian stressed that the US should abandon its Cold War mentality and stop threatening world peace and security.

He tweeted:

The Global Posture Review reveals the #US’ true intention of militarizing the Indo-Pacific and containing #China. We firmly oppose the US moves to take “China threat” as an excuse to increase its military budget, expand military force & maintain military hegemony. pic.twitter.com/3vSpdvzxbc

— Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 (@zlj517) November 30, 2021

The details of the "Global Posture Review," commissioned by President Joe Biden's administration early this year, would remain classified, the official added, so as not to disclose plans to rivals.

Asked if the review foresaw more increases in the US presence in the Pacific region, Karlin said, "We're moving the needle a bit."  

"And what I'd like to think is, over the coming years, you will see that needle move more," she said.

The review did not provide details on how the US would counter the ambitions of Moscow and Beijing but disclosed they are studying a number of initiatives with allies.

In a related context, the US Department of State has published a list detailing 110 countries invited to participate in the “democracy” summit, which excluded Russia and China.

China and Russia's ambassadors to the US, Qin Gang, and Anatoly Antonov, firmly rejected this move in a joint article published by the National Interest.