Secretary Clinton sees US as Vanguard and Protector of “Arab Awakening”

“They [Russia, China] are setting themselves not only against the Syrian people but also the entire Arab awakening,” Secretary Clinton

China calls U.S. criticism over Syria “totally unacceptable”
27 February, 2012 – By Chris Buckley – Reuters The Star

BEIJING: China on Monday called “totally unacceptable” U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s denunciation of its stand on Syria, and a top newspaper said that, after the Iraq war, Washington was “super arrogant” to claim to speak for Arab people.

China’s angry words came after Clinton on Friday called the Chinese and Russian veto of a U.N. resolution on Syria “despicable”.

“They are setting themselves not only against the Syrian people but also the entire Arab awakening,” Clinton said of China and Russia, which have resisted Western and Arab calls to push Syrian President Bashar Assad from power.

China’s defence of its policy was also vehement.

“This is totally unacceptable for us,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily briefing.

“China has always determined its stance on the Syrian issue proceeding from the peace and stability of Syria and the Middle East, and from protecting the long-term, fundamental interests of the Syrian and Arab peoples.”

The spreading bloodshed in Syria, where government forces have been bombarding neighborhoods held by opposition forces, has turned into a broader test pitting Western powers against China and Russia over how forcefully the world should intervene in civil turmoil.

…more