SpaceWar.com reports: “Russia and China accused the United States during a UN Security Council meeting on Monday of stoking already high tensions in the Middle East with its recent retaliatory strikes on Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria.

The US military struck dozens of targets in Syria and Iraq overnight on Friday into Saturday, in retaliation for a January 28 drone attack on a base in Jordan that killed three US soldiers.

The strikes, which targeted elite Iranian units and pro-Iranian militant groups, have led to fears that the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza could spiral into a regional conflict.

‘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.’…”